Story: Lisa Swift | Photo: Mathew Rajan
Following concerns raised in the last issue of the Messenger about the high levels of litter and dumping in Burngreave and Fir Vale, residents contacted the Messenger to tell us about their experiences.
An Earl Marshal Road resident told us “The grassed area where the flats used to be is a mess. There are rats and all sorts. And along the school fence there is a lot of litter that just gets thrown over. We report these problems but it just doesn’t get sorted.”
Dave Woodall from Page Hall explained how he had reported rubbish on his street but it hadn’t been picked up. “I reported it to Streets Ahead and they sent me an email back saying it was done, but the rubbish was still there. They had cleaned the wrong street! I had to report it again.”
A Burngreave resident had a similar experience: rubbish was reported, Streets Ahead said it was cleared, but the rubbish was still there. It took three phone calls and an email to resolve the issue.
Another resident of Page Hall, Mathew Rajan, explained that the problem was ongoing. “I reported the problem on my street and I received an email saying the cleaning had been done and the request was ‘closed’ but this was completely false. I took photos and sent them to Streets Ahead. When they came, I went out to make sure it was done. There is litter here all the time. People hang around and eat fast food and leave it a mess.”
The Messenger asked Amey, who run the Streets Ahead service, why residents were having to report problems more than once and if there were plans to increase street cleaning where there were recurring problems.
Cllr Jack Scott, Sheffield City Council’s Cabinet Member for Environment, Recycling and Street Scene, said:
“We are very aware of the issues with litter in the Burngreave and Fir Vale area and we are working closely with Amey to overcome them.
“Unfortunately we have found that, on occasions, no sooner have our teams cleared the areas of litter, then more litter is immediately put on the streets. We are therefore considering a range of options to tackle this problem, including additional bins, working more with the community, education and enforcement.
“I am also working very closely with Cllr Ibrar Hussain, my Cabinet Assistant, on this issue. Ibrar is working with litter enforcement officers, Amey and local community workers to develop a strategy for tackling some of the wider social and community issues that are at the heart of this issue.”
If you need to report litter or dumping contact Street Ahead on 273 4567 or email streetsahead@sheffield.gov.uk