Appendix 1 separate pdf file or hard copy document
Appendix 2 14
Appendix 3 15
Appendix 4 18
Appendix 5 28
Appendix 6 36
Members of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee
Cllr J K G Allen
Cllr R T Pearson
Cllr D M Beith
Cllr F I Simpson
Cllr A B Douglas
Cllr D S Stewart
Cllr P B E Gibson
Cllr T J Tyler
Cllr R E Hutchinson
Cllr P S Watts
Cllr J D Peggs
Report Issues
1. Members of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee are requested to consider the evidence and findings of their scrutiny review of issues relating to the Council’s grass cutting and gardening service.
2. This report outlines the background to the scrutiny, the evidence gathered during the scrutiny and the findings based on the evidence gathered. Recommendations for the Committee to consider are listed below:
Recommendations
1. That all Parish Councils should be sent a copy of the plans showing which areas are maintained by the Borough Council, and details of the cutting schedule, to clarify the current position.
2. That methods should be introduced to ensure that communications received regarding planting or gardening projects in any part of the Borough are logged, acknowledged, and passed on to the appropriate person (contractor and/or Parks and Cemeteries Manager) to ensure that these are not spoilt by the Council’s gardening works.
3. That methods should be introduced to ensure that communications received regarding problems with the service, or outstanding works requiring attention, are logged, acknowledged and a formal response sent out within an agreed amount of time. It may not be possible for such problems to be addressed, but those who raise the issues should be informed of any action to be taken, or the reasons why action is not to be taken in the particular instance.
4. That the Council considers a growth bid in the next budget round for resources in 2008-09 to increase the frequency of the grass cutting cycle from 14 days to 10 days, and to extend the grass cutting season to be from the beginning of March to the end of October.
5. That the Director of Environment prepare a bid for exceptional resources to cover both the cost of employing 0.7 FTE gardener for the remainder of the financial year 2007-08 to undertake edging and general maintenance work, and the cost of the contractor providing the same service outside the A1 Berwick Bypass area, and that this be presented to the Policy Committee meeting on 25th September.
6. That the Environmental Maintenance Manager ensure that training needs are reviewed and that any refresher training which is required is provided, to ensure that Parks and Cemeteries staff carry out their jobs safely, responsibly and to the standard required; and that monitoring of the contractor ensures that the contract is carried out safely, responsibly and to the standard required.
7. That the Council consider ways in which pride in the job can be encouraged, possibly through an incentive or awards’ scheme.
8. That the Council work with Parish Councils to develop a viable partnership model by which Parish Councils may take on responsibility for grass cutting within their own parishes, or jointly with other neighbouring parishes within their belonging communities; and that the Council showcase examples of good practice demonstrating how community involvement can enhance local areas. Practical support should be made available to Parish Councils and to community groups, including the provision of plants and the loan of tools, and by providing information on fund-raising and direction to those support bodies which can help community organisations to raise project funding.
9. That the Council collate information about insurance products available to community groups carrying out voluntary environmental projects, and about insurance requirements for Parish Councils or community organisations who employ staff to undertake gardening or environmental projects on their behalf.
Introduction
3. This scrutiny has been carried out in accordance with the arrangements detailed in the Constitution of Berwick-upon-Tweed Borough Council. This is the report of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee.
4. The scope of the scrutiny was agreed by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee at a meeting held on 12th July 2007. The decision was taken to carry out a short but hard-hitting investigation of a service which had been highlighted as an issue of public concern during the election campaign in May 2007.
5. The Committee took written evidence from a range of the Council’s customers, and met as a Select Committee to seek further evidence from a selected group of those who had provided written evidence. Together with evidence provided by officers, this material provided the basis for the conclusions and recommendations which appear in this report.
Background
6. Berwick-upon-Tweed Borough Council undertakes grass cutting and gardening services at a number of sites in the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed and across the Borough. The Borough Council is responsible for cutting open spaces such as parks and recreation grounds, and verges within the 30mph signs in villages. The Council also maintains closed churchyards and the Borough’s cemeteries.
7. The grass cutting and strimming service is provided by an in-house parks and gardens team within the A1 by-pass for Berwick itself, and by a contractor in the rural areas. The Borough’s in-house team undertakes all other gardening work across the whole Borough.
8. The schedule contained within the contract for the service outwith the Berwick by-pass details the standard which both the contractor and the in-house team are expected to meet in terms of frequency of cuts, length of cut grass, clearing of clippings from paths and roadways etc.
9. Anecdotal evidence received by Councillors during the election campaign in May 2007 was that the service was not being provided to a level that was satisfactory to Parish Councils, community groups, residents and visitors, and Members of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee therefore decided to undertake a Scrutiny Review to consider whether there were indeed problems with the delivery of the service, and whether any such problems could be addressed to enable the service to meet public expectations.
Methodology
10. Officers provided a copy of schedule used to detail the grass cutting and strimming requirements, which was circulated to all Members (Appendix 1).
11. A call was then put out inviting written evidence from the public, and from a list of selected consultees including Parish Councils, residents’ associations, development trusts and undertakers. The full list of consultees invited to contribute is attached (Appendix 2). The public were alerted to the request for written evidence via a press release which was published in the Berwick Advertiser and The Journal.
12. A total of 38 responses were received, either directly or via the letters page in the Berwick Advertiser. A full list of those who responded is detailed in Appendix 3, and a summary of the key points is attached as Appendix 4.
13. Following the deadline for receipt of submissions, the Overview and Scrutiny Committee met as a Select Committee to look more closely at the evidence which had been received. Members met with officers to probe more deeply into the current service provision, before meeting with five of those who had submitted written evidence to discuss their submissions in more detail. A summary of the discussions which took place at the meeting is attached (Appendix 5).
14. All the evidence obtained by the methods detailed above has been considered and used to reach the findings and conclusions detailed below.
Research Findings
15. Evidence received from the public, Parish Councils and other community groups suggests that there is general dissatisfaction with the service provided by Berwick-upon-Tweed Borough Council, which raised concerns across a number of areas. These issues are picked up in more detail below.
16. There was also evidence of partnership working in a number of different locations, and following a number of different models. These are considered in detail below.
Responsibility
17. It was clear from a number of the submissions that many organisations such as Parish Councils were not clear as to which organisation had responsibility for maintaining and grass cutting in which areas.
18. Currently, Berwick-upon-Tweed Borough Council is responsible for grassed areas including parks, recreation grounds, footpaths and verges within the 30mph speed restrictions across the Borough, unless those areas are privately owned. The Borough Council also has responsibility for cemeteries and closed churchyards. Northumberland County Council is responsible for maintaining verges and footpaths outside the 30mph speed restrictions.
19. Two Parish Councils have taken over responsibility for grass cutting within the 30mph speed restrictions in their parishes from the Borough Council, whilst one other Parish Council reported that it had taken over responsibility for grass cutting outwith the 30mph speed restrictions from the County Councils. Further details of these arrangements are contained in the section on Partnership Working below.
Communications
20. A number of submissions contained details of poor communications between the Borough Council and local organisations including Parish Councils and Development Trusts.
21. In some cases, gardening projects undertaken in local communities had been spoiled when gardeners had cut down shrubs, strimmed areas where bulbs were growing, or put weed killer on newly planted areas – this despite the community groups having informed the Borough Council of the new project.
22. Other submissions raised issues of problems being reported several times, but not dealt with. These included overhanging branches which impeded footpaths, or shrubs and weeds encroaching onto footpaths and making them impassable.
23. Whilst all the organisations concerned recognised the limits of the Council’s capacity to deal with problems immediately, they complained that they received no feedback from the Borough Council and so did not know whether the issue was to be addressed or not.
Frequency of Cuts / Length of Grass Clippings
24. The current schedule dictates that the grass should be cut at least fortnightly, from the end of March to the beginning of October, except in closed churchyards where the frequency is reduced to monthly. When it has been possible, the frequency has been increased, particularly in high profile areas such as the main entrances to the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed and key tourist areas.
25. Recent warm winters have led to a longer growing season. This means that by the time of the first cut, at the end of March, the grass may already be overlong, leading to problems with long clippings being left behind and making it harder to achieve a good finish.
26. Budgets for the grass cutting and gardening service had remained static for a number of years with only inflationary increases, despite the Council including additional areas within the remit of the service, such as new housing estates in Tweedmouth and Seahouses.
27. Cost savings implemented in 2007-08 resulted in less seasonal gardeners being employed, and other staffing issues have reduced the workforce still further. This has made it harder for the in-house team to meet the frequency targets set out in the schedule, and have meant that if areas have been missed due to bad weather, or because of vehicles parked on the grass, there have not been sufficient resources to return and “catch up” later.
28. The weather during the summer of 2007 to date has been extremely wet, resulting in greater growth of grass and weeds, but also reducing the number of days on which grass cutting has been possible. This has meant that the grass has often been cut when it is wet, because it has not been possible to wait for it to dry out and still meet the target frequency of cuts. Cutting wet grass has led to uneven cuts, clumps of wet grass clippings left on the grass, and increased wear and tear on the machinery.
29. The cost of collecting grass clippings would be prohibitive, involving new equipment, increased manpower, and disposal costs. However, if the clippings were shorter, they would mulch into the grass and would not cause the same level of problem that is currently encountered with long, wet grass clippings being trailed into homes and businesses.
30. Officers’ believe that increasing the frequency of the cutting cycle from 14 to 10 days, and increasing the season from the beginning of March to the end of October, would help to address many of the problems by :
• Ensuring grass clippings are not long, so that they will mulch in rather than be a nuisance
• Ensuring that grass is not left to grow at the margins of the season
• Allowing increased flexibility should the weather be bad
• Ensuring a better finish overall
31. Resources required to enhance the service as described above are detailed in Appendix 6.
32. Closed Churchyards
Closed churchyards have not been included in the cost estimates for increasing the frequency of cuts. Closed churchyards are expensive to maintain, as in general they cannot be cut using ride-on mowers, and it would therefore be prohibitively expensive to increase the frequency of cuts from the current 7 cuts per year. Although this may be reviewed again at a future date, the Overview and Scrutiny Committee do not intend to make any recommendations to increase the frequency of cuts in closed churchyards at present.
Weeds
33. Issues relating to weeds and weeding were also raised in a number of the submissions. The weeding of flowerbeds was a major issue, and there were a number of possible solutions.
34. Partnership working had already resulted in great improvements in a number of areas of Berwick, including Castlegate and The Greenses, and in Spittal, where residents had taken over the maintenance of a number of flowerbeds. The West End Residents Association in Tweedmouth were also working on plans to maintain the many gardens and beds in their area, after initial work by the Council to clear and plant them up.
35. In other areas where it had not been possible to develop such partnership arrangements, consideration had to be given to grassing over flowerbeds in order to reduce maintenance requirements as the Council did not have resources to maintain these to the standards residents demanded.
36. Other problems relating to weeding were reported by more than one Parish Council which claimed that weed-killers had been used in places which had been strimmed in previous years, resulting in unpleasant yellowing grass. There were also concerns that the weed-killers used required more than one application to be effective, and that resources were not available to undertake the necessary amount of spraying to clear weeds from footpaths and roadways.
37. A further problem related to weeds growing in the walls of Berwick Parish Churchyard, and in other walled churchyards across the Borough. These weeds were undermining the fabric of the walls, and doing long-term damage which may be very costly to repair in future. Addressing this problem could be seen as an investment to prevent the Council facing much larger costs in the future.
Attention to Detail
38. A number of the comments received in the written evidence related to the quality of the finished job. This ranged from strimmed footpaths which were still impassable due to the cut grass and weeds being left on the pathway; uneven cutting with areas left uncut, or longer tufts and patches missed out; the failure to consistently clear grass clippings from pavements and roadways after cutting; and lack of edging of the grassed areas leaving an untidy finish.
39. Although some of these issues could be related to lack of resources, leading to jobs being rushed, there was concern amongst Members that inadequate supervision was part of the problem, and that both the in-house team and the contractor were not being monitored as closely as necessary.
40. Due to current resourcing problems, the Parks and Cemeteries Manager was fully occupied working alongside the team to ensure that targets were met. This did not allow him the opportunity to supervise and monitor the quality of work to the degree which Members believed were necessary.
41. The additional resources which would be required to release the Parks and Cemeteries Manager to supervise and manage the service on the ground are detailed in Appendix 6.
42. Members suggested that there should be a greater emphasis on ensuring that edges of grassed areas were staightened, flowerbeds edged and cleared etc at the start of the season, as this would make it easier to maintain throughout the growing season.
43. Members also asked that where possible, gutters and gullies beside roadways and footpaths should be cleared of soil etc in the Spring, to reduce the growth of weeds later in the year.
Safety
44. Safety concerns related both to the way the work was carried out, and also to the physical condition of fences, walls and, in closed churchyards, headstones.
45. There were reports of gardeners using equipment without the guards in place, and also of them racing on the mowers, raising concerns both for their safety, and for the safety of others in the vicinity.
46. Other reports related to the sorry, if not dangerous fencing of some park walks, as well as damage to churchyard walls from weeds and branches. There were also reports of hidden dips in churchyards which were covered in mown grass, leading to trips and falls, and also of leaning headstones which needed to be laid flat to prevent the risk of serious accidents.
Partnership Working
47. A number of organisations have been working in partnership with the Borough Council to deliver, or enhance, the grass-cutting and gardening service provided by the Council. There are three main models for this:
48. Service delivered by a Parish Council
Parish Councils may choose to take over delivery of the grass cutting service from the Borough Council. In these cases, the Borough Council will provide the funds which it would have spent on grass cutting in that Parish to the Parish Council. The Parish Council may then choose to enhance the service by supplementing the cost with money from its precept.
In Berwick Borough, only Holy Island and Tillside Parish Councils are currently providing grass cutting services within their parishes. Cornhill Parish Council has taken over responsibility for grass cutting from the County Council, which fully funds the Parish Council’s costs to provide the service.
49. Service delivered by a group of Parish Councils
Using the Belonging Communities framework developed by Northumberland Strategic Partnership, a number of Parish Councils in Glendale are considering ways to work together, pooling resources in order to take over and direct local service delivery which may include grass cutting services in future. This may in future provide a model which other groups of Parish Councils could use to take control of some local service delivery, in line with central government’s double devolution agenda.
Networks of Parish Councils or other organisations may also be able to access funding for projects from outside sources which are not available to the Borough Council.
50. Enhancement of service by community groups
Residents’ associations such as Castlegate Area Residents’ Association (CARA), The Greenses Residents Committee, Spittal Improvement Trust and the West End Residents Association have worked in partnership with the Borough Council on projects to enhance their local areas.
Funding for such projects has come from a wide range of sources, many of which would not have been available to the Borough Council. The Council has in turn been able to help by providing manpower to prepare areas for new projects, or by providing plants and bulbs for gardens which have been planted up and maintained by residents.
In addition to major project work, these bodies have taken on responsibility for maintaining flower beds in their areas, recognising that the Council does not have the resources to do the job to the standard that their communities would like to see. In some areas, this has been done on a voluntary basis, whilst others are considering using their own funds to provide basic gardening services under their own direction.
51. Residents’ organisations requested Council support with the provision of plants, the loan of tools and assistance in finding insurance and funding.
52. Enhancement by businesses
Although there was no direct evidence provided on this issue, Members commented on the work by traders and businesses in Castlegate, West Street and Bridge Street to provide floral enhancements at their own cost, and which they maintained themselves.
53. Comments on Partnership Working
Members were keen to encourage partnership working and the devolution of responsibility when community groups and Parish Councils were willing to get involved. However, Members were keen to ensure that any funding which was devolved with responsibilities was adequate to fund any locally provided service, rather than being at the current reduced rate.
Members also believed that the Council should provide adequate support and advice to those organisations taking on responsibilities or carrying out voluntary enhancements to assist them with this work.
Increased levels of partnership working at an enhanced level may allow local communities to provide the grass cutting and gardening service at a level which satisfies the community, and also to keep control of the service delivery once the new unitary authority comes into being.
Conclusion
54. The current grass cutting and gardening service provided by Berwick-upon-Tweed Borough Council is not meeting customer expectations. Whilst some of the issues raised in evidence to the review may be as a result of reduced manpower available to deliver the service within the Berwick by-pass in 2007, others involve more fundamental decisions to be taken about the level of service which the Council wishes to provide; or are management issues related to the quality of the service delivered.
55. The development of partnerships to allow more local involvement in the delivery of the service, and the level at which that service is provided, should be a priority for the future. This ties in with the central government’s double devolution agenda, as well as allowing local communities to make clear decisions about their own local services, which may help them to retain local delivery of those services after the local government restructure becomes final in 2009.
56. The Overview and Scrutiny Committee has made a series of recommendations which are divided into two areas: those which require immediate attention if the service is to be brought back to the standard dictated by the schedule during 2007-08; and recommendations on the longer term development of the service to ensure that it is in a robust position to encourage continued local delivery once responsibility for the service has moved to the new unitary authority. This would also make it an attractive proposition for partnership working with other organisations across the Borough.
Recommendations
10. That all Parish Councils should be sent a copy of the plans showing which areas are maintained by the Borough Council, and details of the cutting schedule, to clarify the current position.
11. That methods should be introduced to ensure that communications received regarding planting or gardening projects in any part of the Borough are logged, acknowledged, and passed on to the appropriate person (contractor and/or Parks and Cemeteries Manager) to ensure that these are not spoilt by the Council’s gardening works.
12. That methods should be introduced to ensure that communications received regarding problems with the service, or outstanding works requiring attention, are logged, acknowledged and a formal response sent out within an agreed amount of time. It may not be possible for such problems to be addressed, but those who raise the issues should be informed of any action to be taken, or the reasons why action is not to be taken in the particular instance.
13. That the Council considers a growth bid in the next budget round for resources in 2008-09 to increase the frequency of the grass cutting cycle from 14 days to 10 days, and to extend the grass cutting season to be from the beginning of March to the end of October.
14. That the Director of Environment prepare a bid for exceptional resources to cover both the cost of employing 0.7 FTE gardener for the remainder of the financial year 2007-08 to undertake edging and general maintenance work, and the cost of the contractor providing the same service outside the A1 Berwick Bypass area, and that this be presented to the Policy Committee meeting on 25th September.
15. That the Environmental Maintenance Manager ensure that training needs are reviewed and that any refresher training which is required is provided, to ensure that Parks and Cemeteries staff carry out their jobs safely, responsibly and to the standard required; and that monitoring of the contractor ensures that the contract is carried out safely, responsibly and to the standard required.
16. That the Council consider ways in which pride in the job can be encouraged, possibly through an incentive or awards’ scheme.
17. That the Council work with Parish Councils to develop a viable partnership model by which Parish Councils may take on responsibility for grass cutting within their own parishes, or jointly with other neighbouring parishes within their belonging communities; and that the Council showcase examples of good practice demonstrating how community involvement can enhance local areas. Practical support should be made available to Parish Councils and to community groups, including the provision of plants and the loan of tools, and by providing information on fund-raising and direction to those support bodies which can help community organisations to raise project funding.
18. That the Council collate information about insurance products available to community groups carrying out voluntary environmental projects, and about insurance requirements for Parish Councils or community organisations who employ staff to undertake gardening or environmental projects on their behalf.
Appendix 2
Overview and Scrutiny Committee
Review of Grass Cutting and Gardening Service
July/August 2007
List of consultees
26 x Parish Councils
West End Residents’ Association
Castlegate Area Residents’ Association
Spittal Improvement Trust
St Boisil and St Bartholemew’s Residents’ Associations
The Greenses Committee
Seahouses Development Trust
Glendale Gateway Trust
Belford Development Trust
Berwick Community Development Trust
Holy Island of Lindisfarne Community Development Trust
Co-operative Funeral Services Ltd
Charles Mace & Sons Funeral Directors
Haile Funeral Directors, Seahouses
Letter sent to all on Friday 20th July 2007.
Appendix 3
Berwick-upon-Tweed Borough Council
Overview and Scrutiny Committee
Review of Grass Cutting and Gardening Services
List of Written Evidence Received
Name
Organisation / Address
1.
Geoff O’Connell
2.
Mrs S Calder
11 Castle Drive, Berwick-upon-Tweed
3.
Ann Calder
21 Glamis Hill, Berwick-upon-Tweed
4.
Tom Johnston
The Glendale Gateway Trust
5.
Rev Alan Hughes
Vicar of Berwick, Berwick Parish Church
6.
Mrs A Reid
7.
Mrs PM Henderson
20 Newfield, Berwick-upon-Tweed
8.
David Buckle
Cornhill Parish Council
9.
John Robertson
Chairman, West End Residents Association, Tweedmouth
10.
Jon Riley
Manager, North Sunderland and Seahouses Development Trust
11.
Mrs M King
The Garden House, Fenwick
12.
Mrs J Adamson
Clerk, Milfield Parish Council
13.
Ann Gold
Clerk, Lowick Parish Council
14.
Tracey Gillies
Clerk, Wooler Parish Council
15.
Sheila Caskey
Clerk, North Sunderland Parish Council
16.
Susan Shanks
Clerk, Bamburgh Parish Council
17.
Angela Hallam-Baker
Clerk, Branxton Parish Council
18.
John Flude
54 Sunnyside Crescent, Spittal
19.
Sandra Mansell
Clerk, Bowsden Parish Council
20.
Margaret Shaw
Chair, CARA Northern Approaches
21.
Ian Hay
Chairman, Greenses Residents’ Committee
22.
Peter Kinghorn
122 Main Street, Tweedmouth
23.
John McIntosh
Chairman, Shoreswood Parish Council
24.
Mr Mee
34 West End, Tweedmouth
25.
Isabel Hunter
Clerk, Ord Parish Council
26.
Isabel Hunter
Clerk, Ancroft Parish Council
27.
Isabel Hunter
Clerk, Tillside Parish Council
28.
Billy McClymont, Tweedmouth
Letters to the Editor, The Berwick Advertiser 26th July 2007 (used with permission of The Berwick Advertiser)
29.
Ian Kerr, Crossgates, Holy Island
Letters to the Editor, The Berwick Advertiser 9th August 2007 (used with permission of The Berwick Advertiser)
30.
George Martin, Spittal
Letters to the Editor, The Berwick Advertiser 9th August 2007 (used with permission of The Berwick Advertiser)
31.
Margaret Thomas
St Boisil and St Bartholomew’s Residents Assocation, Tweedmouth
32.
Kenneth Blackett
11 Billendean Road, Spittal
33.
Rev Paul M Sewell
Minister, Church of Scotland
34.
Cllr Jenny Allen
35.
Cllr Isabel Hunter
36.
Cllr Trevor Tyler
37.
Anonymous (via Cllr John Robertson
38.
Cllr Geoff O’Connell
Appendix 4
Summary of Key Points in Written Submissions
Comment
Location
Consultee
General
BBC failing miserably to keep its parks, flower beds and cemeteries in some kind of tidy condition
Billy McClymont (via Berwick Advertiser)
Flower Beds
Flower beds not weeded
Rose beds, Highfields and Westfields
Mrs S Calder
Mrs A Calder
No general work on gardens through the summer – WERA negotiating taking this on through volunteers and a jobbing gardener, but need Third Party Insurance, and can’t commit on a long term basis
Tweedmouth West End
West End Residents’ Association
Flowerbeds by Somerfield, car park, war memorial etc overgrown – CARA members and Castlegate Traders have cleared and planted with plants supplied by Council.
Castlegate
CARA
Weeds not cleared from flowerbeds.
East Ord
Ord Parish Council
Weeds not cleared from flowerbeds
Ancroft
Ancroft Parish Council
Pruning
Cotoneaster at entrance to West End has never been pruned and is now over 6ft tall and covers area 5 times as big as it should
West End, Tweedmouth
Mr Mee
Trees on North side of the village are now overgrowing the lane and require trimming
Shoresdean
Shoreswood Parish Council
Action required to improve ground cover adjacent to slope and pruning of trees/shrubs
Berwick Railway Station and car park
CARA
Shrubs planted by NSSDT etc cut down by contractors despite informing BBC of where they are
Old Railway Line Cycleway, Seahouses
North Sunderland and Seahouses Development Trust
Trees cut down when pruning may have been possible
Old Railway Line Cycleway, Seahouses
North Sunderland and Seahouses Development Trust
Grass Cutting
General Standard
General grass cutting not up to expected standard
Tommy the Millers and the Lily Ponds
Mrs S Calder
Mrs A Calder
Poorly finished areas which look like rough ground rather than tended green space
Padgepool Place car park, Wooler
Glendale Gateway Trust
Poor finish
Wooler (general)
Glendale Gateway Trust
General neglected state of grounds, full of weeds including piri-piri
Berwick Parish Churchyard
Rev Alan Hughes
General neglect
Berwick
Mrs A Reid
Poor cutting, and leaving areas where Northumberland County Council van parked
Newfields
Mrs P. M. Henderson
Cutting in Highfields, and in areas seen by tourists, done to a higher standard
Mrs P.M. Henderson
Grass not cut properly (missing parts out)
Milfield
Milfield Parish Council
Businesses end up having to cut verges again as so badly done, and young people have to cut the grass to enable them to play football each week
Milfield
Milfield Parish Council
Young children unable to play as grass is too long
Milfield
Milfield Parish Council
Children not able to play as grass too long
Jubliee Field, Norham
Cllr Trevor Tyler
Village green untidy and overgrown
Norham
Cllr Trevor Tyler
Poor standard of grass cutting on the common
Lowick
Lowick Parish Council
Wide margin left uncut near burn, despite being report to the Council
Lowick
Lowick Parish Council
Grass cutting rough and ready – not to standard expected, including in Main Street cemetery
North Sunderland
North Sunderland Parish Council
Margins of cul-de-sac hasn’t been cut this year – grass now 3 feet high and going to seed
44 Sunnyside Crescent, Tweedmouth
Mr John Flude
Grass area beyond the seat between the old castle ovens and Fields House has not been cut for years and is too overgrown for the Greenses Committee to tackle
The Greenses
The Greenses Residents’ Committee
Work is not carried out efficiently, and workers don’t seem to care for their work
East Ord
Ord Parish Council
It is felt that workers want to complete the job as quickly as possible without pride in their job – a cut carried out by a contractor in Scremerston last year was a great improvement.
Ancroft / Scremerston
Ancroft Parish Council
South end of Scremerston outside the 30mph sign receives very little attention
Scremerston
Ancroft Parish Council
Grass cutting at Crossgates not carried out for a month
Crossgates, Holy Island
Ian Kerr, via Berwick Advertiser
NB Holy Island Parish Council are responsible for all grass cutting on Holy Island.
Grass cutting and gardening service in the area is pretty good, and any problems have been due to weather and staff shortages. Small verge around perimeter of the Co-op needs attention.
Tweedmouth
St Boisil and St Bartholomew’s Residents Association
Grass cutting is paid for @ £2.65 per week, but is only happening once a month or less – 8 weeks apart at worst.
11 Billendean Road, Spittal
Mr Kenneth Blackett
Maintenance at sports and community centre generally good
Seahouses
North Sunderland and Seahouses Development Trust
Areas never cut eg Ryecroft Way, Common Road, Broomey Road
Wooler
Wooler Parish Council
Areas no longer cut eg Burnhouse Road
Wooler
Wooler Parish Council
Late night cutting
Scotts Park, Wooler
Wooler Parish Council
Areas which do get cut are overgrown and unsightly
Wooler
Wooler Parish Council
Strimming
Only partial cutting of embankment done each time (top sometimes strimmed, sides done other times)
Embankments on road to North Road Industrial Estate from Hedges Cottage
Mrs P.M. Henderson
Strimming done carelessly and P.C. has had to protect trees with wire netting
Branxton
Branxton Parish Council
Strimming not carried out
East Ord
Ord Parish Council
Areas not strimmed
Ancroft / Scremerston
Ancroft Parish Council
Cutting down of tree saplings when strimming
Seahouses Sports and Community Centre
North Sunderland and Seahouses Development Trust
Verges
Verges on approach road to village and lane surrounding the village are not cut
Shoresdean
Shoreswood Parish Council
Overgrown hedges and ditches at all road junctions, especially the two major road junctions, need addresses to fast moving traffic can be seen
Shoreswood
Shoreswood Parish Council
Rough appearance to verges, even immediately after cutting
Bamburgh
Bamburgh Parish Council
Grass verge at entrance to village only partly cut, leaving unsightly weeds behind. Could it be cut up to the hedge?
Radcliffe Road, Bamburgh
Bamburgh Parish Council
Could verge on road side of the playing field wall be included in the Council’s schedule as it is continuation of verge Council already cuts, is a small area and is very untidy
Branxton
Branxton Parish Council
Cuttings left/not cleared from footpaths and roadways
Length of grass cuttings which are left
Wooler
Glendale Gateway Trust
Cuttings not cleared from paths and roadways
Cornhill
Cornhill Parish Council
Cuttings not cleared from paths and roadways, so slippery in wet weather
Tweedmouth West End
West End Residents’ Association
Grass cuttings not removed – especially on riverside. WERA could consider raking this up and bagging it, if Council would collect the bags
Tweedmouth West End
West End Residents’ Association
Mess left when grass does get cut
Milfield
Milfield Parish Council
Unsightly mess left with large amount of grass being left in swathes
Lowick
Lowick Parish Council
A lot of mess left after strimming
Wooler
Wooler Parish Council
Grass cuttings scattered over pavements and pathways, making them slippery in wet weather, and untidy
North Sunderland
North Sunderland Parish Council
Untidy state of village green after cutting, with grass left lying, and stewn over pavement and footpaths. Sometimes trimmed instead of cutting with mower.
Branxton village green
Branxton Parish Council
Use of strimmer rather than mower leaves long cuttings behind which is not conducive to use of park
Bowsden Village Park
Bowsden Parish Council
If grass cuttings were collected, outlook would be better and children would be cleaner
North Road Park (area in front of Summerfield Terrace)
CARA
Grass cuttings left to rot means residents unable to use the green
Shoresdean village green
Shoreswood Parish Council
Grass cuttings not cleared from pavements
Tweedmouth West End
Mr Mee
Grass cuttings not collected, and grass cuttings left over footpaths.
East Ord
Ord Parish Council
Grass not collected, and cuttings left over footpaths. Could machines which collect grass cuttings not be used?
Ancroft / Scremerston
Ancroft Parish Council
Grass cuttings not collected
Berwick and Tweedmouth Cemeteries
Rev Paul Sewell
Frequency of cuts
Too long between cuts
Wooler
Glendale Gateway Trust
Frequency of cuts – Parish Council would be willing to fund additional cost of meeting a better schedule, agreed annually in advance with Borough Council
Cornhill
Cornhill Parish Council
Not enough cuts
Milfield
Milfield Parish Council
Not cut often enough
Wooler
Wooler Parish Council
Too long between cuts
Bowsden
Bowsden Parish Council
Foliage around interpretive seat not cut as often necessary
Tommy the Miller’s field
CARA
Grass at entrance to the cemetery is unkempt and untidy, and should be cut more regularly.
North Road Cemetery
CARA
Council hasn’t been able to cut Castlevale Park grass and hedges as often as usual due to weather. Dog warden patrols would be appreciated.
Castlevale Park
CARA
Not cut often enough. Grass too high before it is cut.
East Ord
Ord Parish Council
Grass too long before being cut, so cuttings messy and makes area look rundown
Berwick and Tweedmouth Cemeteries
Rev Paul Sewell
Footpaths/cycleways
Failure to keep footpaths clear and edged
Cornhill
Cornhill Parish Council
Failure to maintain hedgerows, including enforcement re private hedges
Cornhill
Cornhill Parish Council
Length of grass after cuts not a consistent length
Tweedmouth West End
West End Residents’ Association
Vegetation by cycleway not cut back and cycleway often overgrown
Old Railway Line Cycleway, Seahouses
North Sunderland and Seahouses Development Trust
No repairs done to cycleway or fencing
Old Railway Line Cycleway, Seahouses
North Sunderland and Seahouses Development Trust
Footpaths narrowing due to encroaching verges and not wide enough for wheelchair therefore not DDA compliant
Junction to Cocklawburn to the A1167
Ancroft Parish Council
Overgrown footpaths in Berwick and Spittal
Spittal Promenade to cliffs / path from Tweed Street to New Road / New Road itself
George Martin, via Berwick Advertiser
Many paths in the town are overgrown
Berwick, Spittal and Tweedmouth
Rev Paul Sewell
Paths and pavements in Tweedmouth overgrown since sweeping stopped, weeds are three feet high and hedges take up 50% of path.
Pathway leading from Ladywell Road to Osborne Road and trading estate
Peter Kinghorn
Footpaths overgrown and encroachment of hedges
River Tweed – bypass / near Castle Vale House
Anonymous (via Cllr John Robertson)
Weeds / Weed Killing
Weed killing instead of strimming round flower tubs and trees
Fenwick
Mrs M King
No weed killing this year, including in Main Street cemetery
North Sunderland
North Sunderland Parish Council
Weed killer sprayed round trees and flower tubs instead of strimming – not as good result and still doesn’t improve cutting
Bamburgh
Bamburgh Parish Council
Weeds and grass growing through cracks in pavement
Tweedmouth West End
Mr Mee
Brambles and elder encroaching on grassed area in residential area
Padgepool Place, Wooler
Glendale Gateway Trust
Nettles not cut back
Milfield
Milfield Parish Council
Hazard barrier almost completely obscured by weeds
Waren Mill
Bamburgh Parish Council
Overgrown ivy etc on perimeter walls
Berwick Parish Churchyard
Rev Alan Hughes
Safety
Safe practices not observed
Milfield
Milfield Parish Council
No safety guards on machine
Scotts Park, Wooler
Wooler Parish Council
Grass cutting done at too fast a pace and there appear to be races with the lawn mowers
East Ord
Ord Parish Council
Sunken graves hidden by long grass are dangerous
Berwick and Tweedmouth Cemeteries
Rev Paul Sewell
Questions
Any assistance available for Parish Council if it were to take on grass cutting itself?
Bowsden
Bowsden Parish Council
Is Parish Council given sight of grass cutting contract?
Shoreswood
Shoreswood Parish Council
Tillside carry out own grass cutting and receive the sum from the Borough Council that it would have cost BBC to carry it out. This doesn’t cover cost to Tillside of its service.
Chatton
Tillside Parish Council
Are the closed churchyards BBC’s responsibility?
Chatton
Tillside Parish Council
What would effect of housing transfer have on the responsibility of the Council for grass-cutting.
Cllr Geoff O’Connell
Tenants gardens overgrown
Highfields
Mrs A Calder
Recessed areas near Scotsgate and walls need attention and consideration to alternative to present arrangements should be considered.
Castlegate
CARA
Issues not relating to the scope of the review
Survey of headstones in churchyard required
Berwick Parish Churchyard
Rev Alan Hughes
Collection of blue bags – mostly used for garden waste. Why can these not be collected
Shoresdean
Shoreswood Parish Council
Delay in Council mending a fence at playing field
Branxton
Cllr Jenny Allen
Removal of skipping rope and playground equipment
Cllr Jenny Allen
Need for skip for garden waste, or brown bin garden waste collection
Belford
Cllr Geoff O’Connell
Fences and tarmac require mending
Lily pond area
Anonymous (via Cllr John Robertson)
Appendix 5
Minutes of : Overview and Scrutiny Committee – Review of Grass Cutting
Date : Tuesday, 14th August 2007
1.
Present:
Councillor DS Stewart in the Chair;
Councillors, D Beith, AB Douglas, PBE Gibson, JD Peggs, FI Simpson, T J Tyler and PS Watts.
Also in attendance: Councillor EI Hunter and JA Robertson
2.
Apologies
Apologies for absence were received on behalf of Councillors J Allen.
3.
Meeting with Officers
3.1 Present
Chris Budzynski, Environmental Maintenance Manager
Rob Marriner, Director of Environment
3.2 General
• Areas of responsibility – open spaces including recreation grounds, car parks, beach areas, verges within 30mph limits, cemeteries and closed churchyards.
• In-house staff cover the area within the Berwick by-pass: there are 9 full-time employees and 6 seasonal employees. The rural areas outwith the by-pass are contracted out.
• Contract specifies the number of cuts, which are carried out fortnightly (closed churchyards cut monthly) between the end of March and the beginning of October. In-house staff aim to match the specification in the town areas. Bad weather can make it difficult to meet the two week cycle, and may mean workmen need to cut wet grass. This can lead to uneven cut, and may damage machinery.
• The Council works with organisations such as CARA, West End Residents Association, Spittal Improvement Trust, The Greenses Committee and Wooler Parish Council on improvements and enhancements, where the community organisations may be able to attract grant funding not available to the Council.
• Holy Island and Tillside Parish Councils have taken over responsibility for their own grass-cutting services. They receive from the Borough Council the money which would have been spent on the service in their parishes, and can enhance this from their precept to provide an improved level of service if they wish. Bamburgh used to do its own grass cutting but has in recent years handed responsibility back to the Borough Council.
• Current grass cutting contract for area outside the by-pass is in 4th year of a 5 year contract. Parish Councils are invited to suggest areas they wish to have included in the contract when it is to be let, but not all suggestions can be accepted or price would be too high.
3.3 Problems
• Milder winters leading to longer growing season mean current specification no longer adequate (needs to start earlier and end later).
• Inflationary budget increases over a number of years haven’t allowed for Council increasing the areas included in the service, such as grassed areas in new housing estates. To be addressed in future by Section 106 agreements.
• The budget setting process for 2007/08 saw the consolidation of a large number of maintenance budgets into a single budget. This consolidation exercise considered the cost of all maintenance contracts (such as third party grass cutting arrangements) and ensured that the budget included these potential costs. One of a range of changes proposed in the restructure paper taken to Council in February 2007 was not to employ seasonal gardeners and this contributed to the overall saving related to the implementation. This saving was included in the overall employee budget and not specifically against any service area.
• Many complaints relate to collection of grass cuttings and frequency of cuts. This is not possible with the equipment currently in use, and the cost of any other collection method and disposal of the cuttings would be prohibitive. However, increased frequency of cuts would result in shorter clippings which would mulch in and would not cause the current problems.
• With lack of resources (manpower and equipment), tend to concentrate on main entrances to the town, and main tourist areas. Other areas may not be cut as often.
3.4 Members then considered the following issues:
• Is the Council making the best use of the resources it has?
• Is the work completed to an appropriate standard, and does it comply with the terms of the contract (esp relating to grass cuttings being left on paths and pavements)?
• Is there an appropriate level of monitoring and supervision to ensure that the standards are met both by in-house staff and by the contractor?
• Is there clarity as to what is the Borough Council’s responsibility, and what is the County Council’s responsibility?
• Would greater attention to detail such as improved edging in the Spring lead to better results throughout the year?
• Are there ways to improve communication between Parish Councils and the Borough Council? When Parishes undertake local planting or gardening, it is sometimes undermined eg bulbs planted were then cut down before flowering when the area was strimmed, despite the Borough Council being told that they have been planted.
• Many complaints relate to path clearing, flowerbeds, pruning and weeding. In some areas these have been addressed through partnership working eg with CARA, Castlegate Traders, The Greenses Committee, Spittal Improvement Trust and discussions are on-going with West End Residents Association. Council can provide plants, and may be able to lend tools etc, while local organisations have taken responsibility for planting, weeding and dead-heading. Increased levels of partnership working would allow communities more direct involvement in how their area looks, as well as understanding that the Council cannot do everything. Issues relating to insurance etc must be addressed.
• Technological solutions should be considered, and discussions with other Councils are on-going.
• Clearing of gullies in Spring would help prevent some of the growth at the edge of roads, and the current road-sweeping contract should be examined to see if this can be included.
3.5 Councillor Stewart then thanked the officers for taking part, and ended this part of the meeting.
4.
Meeting with Invited Representatives of Community Organisations and the Public
4.1 Present
Parish Councillor Jean Adamson, Clerk, Milfield Parish Council
Parish Councillor David Buckle, Chairman, Cornhill Parish Council
Parish Councillor Gail Hill, Milfield Parish Council
Rev Alan Hughes, Vicar of Berwick
Mr John Robertson, Chairman, West End Residents Association
Mrs Margaret Shaw, Chair, CARA Northern Approches
4.2 Rev Alan Hughes
The Vicar provided the Committee with a scrapbook of photographs taken in Berwick recently, and raised the following points:
• Problems with road marking beside the Parade carpark.
• Weeds on the churchyard wall are damaging the structure of the wall.
• There has been damage to headstones caused by the cutter.
• Leaning and dangerous headstones need to be addressed.
• The churchyard is in a poor state and monthly cuts are inadequate for such a major tourist attraction in Berwick.
4.3 Parish Councillor David Buckle, Cornhill Parish Council
• Cornhill Parish Council are keen to consider shared responsibilities.
• Working with other Parish Councils in the Glendale Belonging Community, and would like both Berwick-upon-Tweed Borough Council and Northumberland County Council to work with these Parishes with a view to delegating more responsibilities, and the appropriate funding, to enable the Parishes to determine the frequency and standard for grass cutting, footpaths, pruning etc.
• Currently have some devolved responsibilities from County, and these are fully funded.
• Need to be able to direct work where necessary at a local basis, rather than having to plead with Borough Council to do the work required.
• Glendale Belonging Community group looking at ways of pooling resources to deliver local services – but need those responsibilities delegated from other authorities to be fully funded. Also need to look at outside funding for specific projects.
4.4 Mrs Margaret Shaw, CARA Northern Approches
• Acknowledge that Council doesn’t have access to same funds as CARA has, and have used this to get funding for projects such as improvements at Castlevale.
• Take initiative eg with flowerbeds by Somerfield and by the War Memorial. Borough Council has provided plants which CARA has planted and maintain on a voluntary basis.
• Group believes there are benefits in working together with Council, and accept that the Council can’t do everything.
• Community involvement, including High School groups doing Duke of Edinburgh award.
• Need support from Council with plants, use of tools etc. Specific funding can only be obtained for projects, not on-going maintenance.
• CARA has insurance which covers all its constituent groups, including the High School students.
4.5 Mr John Robertson, West End Residents Association
• West End Residents Association don’t wish to take on formal responsibility, but are keen to get involved with maintaining flowerbeds over the summer once they have been cleared and planted up by the Borough Council. Or could do the planting with donated plants but need written permission for this from the Council.
• Would use a mixture of volunteers and a part-time gardener funded by local businesses to carry out work.
• Problems with insurance need to be resolved.
• WERA would like to see grass cuttings cleared from riverside area, and are willing to rake and bag these if the Council will then collect and dispose of them.
• Channels need to be swept to prevent weeds growing by roadways.
4.6 Jean Adamson / Gail Hill, Milfield Parish Council
• Grass cutting service not done to satisfactory standard leaving playing field uneven and unusable.
• People unable to get through back gates onto footpath as it is strimmed but not cleared.
• General maintenance of footpaths is very poor, making them dangerous for the elderly.
• Parish Council has funding for specific project in the village involving the whole community. Would be interested in taking on responsibility for grass cutting provided it was fully funded.
4.7 Councillor David Stewart then thanked all those who had taken part, and ended this section of the meeting.
5.
Discussion session
5.1 Members discussed the evidence received, and came up with the following key points:
• Urgent matters raised in the written evidence should be dealt with outside the review process.
• Devolving responsibility for delivery of grass cutting and gardening services would meet the Government’s agenda and may protect the service delivery in light of the new unitary authority to come, but this needed to be with sufficient resources to ensure flexible solutions could be achieved.
• Different models of partnership working had been shown by a number of the respondents, and these models should be made available to other Parish Councils or community organisations which wanted to take on service delivery or partnership working. The Council should facilitate these partnerships, and provide guidance in terms of finding funding for specific projects.
• Support to groups should include provision of plants, and offering tools on loan when not being used by Council staff.
• Insurance must be considered, to see how cover can best be provided for volunteers and those employed on a casual basis by partner organisations.
• Resourcing of the current service must be reconsidered, to ensure that there are sufficient resources to bring the current provision back to acceptable standards, and to ensure monitoring and supervision of the in-house and contractor services could be carried out. Costs should be obtained for the following:
- Additional staffing to allow Parks and Cemetery Manager to manage and supervise, rather than have to work alongside staff full-time
- Catching up on the backlog of outstanding work, which may include the reinstatement of overtime and/or employing additional seasonal workers
- Increasing frequency of cuts from a 14 to a 10 day cycle, and increasing the length of the year from the beginning of March to the end of October
It was agreed that the Chair and Vice-Chair should meet with officers to obtain these costings in order to develop fully costed recommendations for the review report.
• Attention to detail is currently lacking, and emphasis needs to be put on doing the job well, rather than just quickly. In particular the requirement to clear cuttings from paths and roadways must be adhered to.
• Road sweeping contracts should be reviewed to see if gutter cleaning can be done in Spring, to prevent build up of soil and seeds which encourage weeds and grass to grow alongside roadways.
6.
Draft Report
6.1 A draft report with findings and recommendations is to be produced and, if possible, circulated prior to the meeting of Overview and Scrutiny Committee on Thursday 23rd August 2007.
Appendix 6
Overview & Scrutiny Committee
The following costs have been estimated using information available and the experience of officers involved in current service delivery. They are believed to be reasonable but not precise. The figures have not been subject to checking by the Head of Finance and Accountancy.
Collect Grass Cuttings
In order to achieve this objective two cutter would work in tandem together with a vehicle to receive cuttings and dispose of them to the Waste Transfer Station or alternative to be determined.
It should be noted that the machinery is designed to work in relatively good weather and would not operate in wet conditions.
Each cutter would cut for approximately 10 minutes before requiring to empty the collector. This would be tipped directly into the rear of the vehicle. It is estimated that the vehicle could receive the contents of 6 collections before requiring to be emptied (30 minutes of cutting time). If the time taken to empty and return to the cutters is greater than 10 minutes there will be an increase in down time for the cutters.
The cutters would be required to be fitted with new cutting decks and collection facilities, and these could be fitted to the existing units.
The costs of this change are estimated as follows;
Provision of Transit Tipper (leased) £2,800 pa.
Additional employee including on costs (required for 33 weeks) £22,000 pa prorate = £14,000.
Additional cost of converted cutters (leased) 2@£1000 = £2000 pa.
Fuel and incidental costs £2000 pa.
Cost of disposal – unknown
Estimated annual cost £28,800
The cost of collecting cuttings by the contractor was included in the contract pricing regime as an additional 20% to the contact cost. This would amount to £13,000 pa. at current prices.
Additional cuts for grassed areas
Members may wish to consider a regime of increased number of cuts as an alternative to the collection of cuttings. This will ensure shorter grass during the growing season, and after the first 3 cuts of each season, the length of the cut grass should not be particularly problematic.
Estimates have been prepared on the basis of cutting grass on a 10 day cycle (24 cuts pa.) rather than 14 days (15 cuts pa.) as present.
In order to achieve this, an additional 2 person gang would be required with associated machinery. Costs have been estimated as follows;
Lease of ride on mower = £1800 pa.
2 employees for 33 weeks = £28,000
Purchase of strimmer = £400
Purchase of walk behind mower = £700
Cemeteries
The remaining grass cutter will retain its existing configuration for use in cemeteries where it is impractical to collect cuttings due to the necessary mix of cutting by ride on mower, walk behind mower and strimmer.
The current regime is to cut at 14 day interval (15 cuts pa.) It would be proposed to increase the frequency to 10 day intervals (24 cuts pa.)
The cost of this change is estimated to be;
For each additional cut in each cemetery;
1 day work for ride on mower,
6 days work for strimmer
1.75 days work for walk behind mower
Total 8.75 days for each additional cut (9 extra) for each cemetery (2) = 157.5 days. On the basis of an employee working approximately 218 days pa. this equates to 0.75 FTE @ £22,000 = £16,500 pa.
Closed Churchyards
It is suggested that improved communication be undertaken to ensure those responsible for closed churchyards are aware of the cutting regime and do not have a higher expectation.
Tidying flower beds in Berwick
It should be noted that although not identified during the collection of evidence, that over a number of years (at least the last 5) the Council has offered employment to 2 workers that were fully funded through Government funded “Return to Work” scheme or through training placements from Northumberland College. These workers were often deployed to undertake work on flower beds.
There have been difficulties over communication with community groups, resulting in a failure to coordinate preparatory work and planting. This has been identified as an issue that can be addressed provided time is available for the Supervisor to speak with appropriate contacts.
In order to effectively satisfy the demands for weeding, pruning, dead heading and edging flower beds it is estimated that 2 FTE would be required. Currently 1 FTE is deployed in this work.
This work would be required for 33 weeks of the year with an estimated cost = £16,500
It is not considered that work undertaken by community group has any effect upon workload as this normally involves work not otherwise undertaken by the Council.
Edging
It is considered that edging of grassed areas should be undertaken once per year. This work can be undertaken at any time of year and it is suggested winter should be an appropriate time. This activity could be undertaken by employees undertaking other duties during the growing season allowing full time employment rather than seasonal, which often results in the loss of experienced employees, when they obtain alternative permanent employment.
This work relates to cemeteries and areas of housing as follows;
• Cemeteries
• Eastcliffe – 2 employees for 2 weeks
• Highcliffe – 2 Employees for 6 weeks
• Prior Park – 2 Employees for 2 weeks
• Newfields – 2 employees for 5 weeks
• Westfields – 2 employees for 2 weeks
• Hive Acres – 2 employees for 2 weeks
Monitoring and Supervision
If the identified changes are made to the current arrangements assurance can be provided that the Supervisor will effectively monitor external contracts and manage the workforce.
Arbourcultural work
The identified changes will also provide sufficient flexibility to undertake tree pruning work, which is currently neglected.
