Cutters finally swing into action to cut 'overgrown' bushes

Neighbours have been sharing photos of overgrown grass and bushes on Facebook community pages.

In some cases, the overgrown bushes have obstructed walkways.

The issue has been particularly discussed in Earley and Woodley, which are in the Reading urban area but fall within Wokingham Borough.

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In Earley, pictures show overgrown grass and bushes in Regent Close, Cutbush Lane, and along footpaths to the Lower Earley Asda.

While Wokingham Borough Council have said that its grass cutters are swinging into action to tidy up the areas and clear walkways, neighbours are still sharing pictures of unkept grassed areas.

In Woodley, residents shared pictures of overgrown bushes almost obstructing footpaths in Waingels Road and Mowhawk Way. You can see a gallery of photos neighbours have submitted above.

Grass cutting in the borough is conducted by council contractors Tivoli Group Ltd.

A lead member of the council admitted the grass cutting service provided this year has been “below standards.”

For its part, a boss of Tivoli Group apologised to residents for their performance, in part blaming “aggressive” grass and bush growth for the lack of progress.

Overgrown bushes encroaching onto the pedestrian pavement in Waingels Road, Woodley Credit Anne Ronan Hyatt

Councillor Parry Batth (Conservative, Shinfield North), executive member for environment and leisure, said: “The service that Tivoli Group Ltd has provided has been below the standards we and our residents would expect. We have been working with Tivoli to improve this, however this has been unsuccessful. The issue has been escalated and we have specified that they need to provide a fast and permanent solution to fulfil the obligations of the contract.”

Spencer Rock, Tivoli’s chief operating officer, said: “We are very proud of our partnership with Wokingham Borough Council and are committed to delivering a quality service which everyone can be proud of, however we acknowledge our grass cutting performance isn’t where we’d expect it to be at this stage.

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“Unfortunately, this season has proven undeniably difficult so far. Firstly, we’ve seen an unprecedented grass growth rate – around 60 per cent more aggressive than last year, and the flush experienced in late May and early June is the most extensive we’ve seen in 20 years. There is also a nationally recognised shortage of labour for many sectors including grounds maintenance, which has impacted the contract heavily.

“On behalf of Tivoli, I would like to apologise for the unsatisfactory performance and assure you that we are implementing all possible actions to rectify the situation as quickly as possible, while keeping the council informed of our progress at all times.”

Overgrown grass in Regent Close, Lower Earley. Credit: UGC

The council has urged people who want to find out more about its grass cutting scheme and report any issues on its website here.

If you think an area has been missed by grass cutters, you can report it to the council’s customer services team with the exact details of the area using the nearest property address if possible.

Council officers will then check the area and raise the issue with the  contractors so it is not missed in the next grass cutting round.

You can report missed grass cutting rounds by emailing CustomerService@wokingham.gov.uk .