We’ve been out and about dealing with issues in the Westfield area over the weekend. Generally local services are better then they were 12 months ago with streets tidier, verges trim and most gutters cleaner.
We’ve reported the following issues using the “FixMyStreet” app.
About 2 inches of detritus in one of the gutters in St Stephens Sq. Seems to have been missed by the sweepers (there was a similar problem in Hammerton Close)
Detritus on the Tedder Road park footpath
Weeds in Tithe Close. We’ve found several areas where weed-killer has either not been applied or it has proved to be ineffective
In response to a Freedom of Information request the Council has confirmed the service standards it will be applying this summer.
The standard grass cutting frequency for adopted highways areas is now 10 per year (reduced from 14 a couple of years ago). This can – depending on the weather – result in the grass growing quite high.
Adopted streets include grassed amenity areas such as Kingsthorpe and Otterwood Lane.
The response to the request also revealed that some areas of land owned by the Council – including the area behind the library on Front Street – receive no routine maintenance at all.
The Council currently does not provide details of its service level agreements on its web site.
Customer Contracts – where the Council tells residents what level of service quality to expect – also fell into disuse several years ago