Falkirk Council say they are 'catching up' on grass cutting after outcry from residents

Many parks and opens spaces normally maintained by Falkirk Council have not had any mowing carried out with the local authority blaming a breakdown in machinery.

However, a council spokesperson said they are “catching up” but people say they are now leaving clumps of long grass scattered across paths and other public areas.

One Braes resident said: “Still no grass cutting in the Braes area, getting utterly ridiculous now. How long does it take to repair a lawn mower?”

Told by a councillor the work was now taking place, he added: “Grass verges have not been cut for weeks. It is completely unacceptable, given the hikes on our council tax over last couple of years. ”I have also seen social media posts from other areas where similar disgraceful lack of service from the council is evident.

"Communities are being ignored by Falkirk Council and its elected members.”

In Camelon, one resident complained about the state of Easter Carmuirs Park, saying: “I am so sick of the council not cutting the grass in the park. Falkirk looks a total mess with long grass everywhere. I’ve had to cut the grass myself to enable my dogs to get under the handrail.”

She added that her 93-year-old mother fell recently as she couldn’t get hold of the handrail because of the long grass.

Other residents have complained about overgrown shrubs and trees blocking paths making it difficult for pedestrians to pass safely without having to step into the road.

Reassuring people that they plan to improve performance, a spokesperson for Falkirk Council said: “Our grass cutting schedule is currently running slightly behind following a number of machinery breakdowns and seasonal pressures on our teams. We expect to be back on track soon, and squads are working to catch up.

"We do consider hiring plant and equipment when we know an asset will be out of service for a longer period. In this case, the breakdowns have been short-term. Hiring machinery is not always practical for short repairs, as the time needed to source, deliver and commission equipment can exceed the length of the breakdown itself."

They said that routine shrub maintenance is carried out between October and March, and scheduled hedge-cutting is currently on track.

"The shrub shown on Hope Street is growing from private land,” they added. "The council has responsibility for adopted footpaths. Where vegetation from private land obstructs an adopted footpath, we can use legislative powers to require the landowner to cut it back. We will inspect the Hope Street shrub and, where appropriate, serve notice on the landowner requiring it to be cut back."

Earlier this year Falkirk Council proposed reducing the amount of grass cutting carried out at Zetland Park in Grangemouth and Callendar Park in Falkirk from weekly to three weekly. This would bring them in line with other public green spaces across the district and save £80,000 annually.

However, after a public outcry, the proposal was dropped.