Rat-infested rooms and houses so full of junk that it is almost impossible to move around inside are among filthy Oxford homes costing about £20,000 a year to clear up.

Oxford City Council has to spend thousands tackling the issue of dirty homes which cause a risk to public health.

Now a senior public health officer has said the city has "a lot" of "bad cases", and the council has revealed it has to spend about £2,000 and takes a team of workers an average three days to clear-up each "filthy" property.

In the worst case recorded by the council, £10,000 was spent clearing 34-tonnes of rubbish from one Oxford home.

Council spokesman Louisa Dean said: "The cost of clear-ups vary depending on how extreme the case is. Generally, there are about ten houses a year that require intervention by the council's team."

Tonight (Mon), the spotlight will fall on one such property in Henley Street, east Oxford, as members of the council's public health team appear on BBC1 programme War at the Door.

The team are seen getting to grips with the two-storey rat-infested home of Eddie Regent, 80, and his wife Arshid, 63.

Eighteen months ago, senior public health officer Anne McMahon and her team arrived on the Regents' doorstep to find rats running and breeding throughout the house.

The team agreed to allow a BBC film crew to join them for two months as they battled to persuade the Regents to clear out the vermin.

Ms McMahon said: "The couple involved were quite happy with their living conditions and it took some time to explain to them that it couldn't be allowed, not only for their health and safety, but for that of their neighbours."

John Goddard, leader of the council's Liberal Democrat group, said: "Tenants do have a responsibility to look after their homes but the council can also keep a closer eye on things.

"I'm not suggesting we should encourage a spying society, but housing managers could be more active on our estates."

War at the Door starts at 8.30pm.