I have had complaints about overflowing bins in Sanderstead Rec in recent weeks, so have raised questions about how the emptying schedule is being managed with council officers. Here is what they say:
The exceptional circumstances that COVID-19 has imposed onto the workforce have aggravated the pressure that grounds maintenance usually experiences in the spring/summer season. We are working with fewer resources than usual as some members of our team are in self-isolation and unfortunately the present restrictions imposed by the government are an impediment to hire extra staff.
As such, we had to readjust the service to mitigate the negative effects of the present situation to the best of our capacity. As a consequence of this some areas have been impacted and bins collection cycles have been increase although we still manage to attend every one of the 127 parks within the borough several times a week and Sanderstead rec bins are empty on alternative days.
Due to the latest restriction lifted by the government in junction with the benign weather the parks are extremely busy, especially during the weekend, this will create a backlog that requires time to be address and the park rangers are working hard to eliminate during their working hours.
Obviously we do have to recognise that C19 is making lots of areas of work more difficult, but I will keep checking up on this to ensure we don't get into a backlog situation again.