Rant against my local Council

[Katharine]

This morning we received notification of changes to our recycling schedules - in an A4 envelope franked at 46p. The reason it had to be A4 (in their opinion) was that they had added November and December to the 2009 calendar enclosed so that piece of card was longer than A5. How much of our money have they wasted by not thinking things through and ensuring it could be posted in a A5 envelope? I have no idea how many houses there are in Gwynedd.

Come to think of it, why did it have to be posted anyway and not left by the binmen next time they come?

I spend much of my time at work trying to avoid unnecessary and thoughtless waste of money and this sort of wanton waste annoys me. It is our money they are wasting, I thought after the Iceland debacle they would be taking more care. GRRRR!!!

[NEILL THE NOTORIOUS]

Hi Katherine,
I see your point, there are only two answers to this sort of idiocy.
1. If you really feel incensed enough ---- Get Elected ! --------- (I did !)
2. The best possible weapon against Elected Members is PUBLIC EMBARRASSMENT. Writr a good piece for your local Press,with plenty of examples, as you have done, and keep doing it. The Press love this sort of battle. However --- I don't know the political persuasion of the Gwynnedd Council, but try to avoid the local Press who are owned by, or heaviliy in support of, that particular Party ! It has happened where I am !
Go to it Girl !!!

[englishangel]

Ours are just posted through the door by the binmen, just got it today, November to next August rather than all next year so those who have thrown the last one away get this years Christmas dates. Then in May or so they do the next 9 months.

[Vonny]

Ours were posted through the door by the binmen too.

[midget]

Ours are due any time now. Recycling dat tomorrow, so the new calendar may arrive then.

[kerrensimmonds]

I think that ours come through the door, delivered by Royal Mail, as part of the mountain of junk mail. Presumably the Council pays for the service but it would be more reliable than asking the rubbish collectors themselves to go round finding letterboxes.

[Ajarn Philip]

... than asking the rubbish collectors themselves to go round finding letterboxes.

Wouldn't they be 'waste disposal engineers' these days?

[kerrensimmonds]

Probably. I was trying not to use non-PC language....

[gma]

Our 'refuse management team' (please take note Prof U ) do not deliver the recycling schedule, nor are they allowed onto our properties to collect or deliver anything else, (except remarkably to collect a christmas card containing appropriate tips as they informed us the first year we moved here); if something blows across the lawns or drive they can't fetch it as they may injure themselves (the shrubs in Berkshire are very well known for being particularly hard - mine often disappear up to Glasgee for the weekend).

Furthermore, our local council would not dream of delivering one paltry piece of paper when they could use the opportunity to load the postman with the local glossy four page print out teling us all how well they're doing - which mostly seems to consist of police and educational targets, doesn't mention recycling or the revenue stream therefrom, nor the roads which quite frankly are only marginally better than those in Kabul depsite being this highest earning, most car owning, most house owning and gym membershipping area in the country! Also sent with this missive are political messages from the current encumbents, details of the local support groups, the little green book (loads of local tradespeople supposedly recommended by enthusaistic customers), details of firework displays, round table activities, local tip closing and opening times, contact numbers for if you're burgled, carjacked or requiring in any way the services of victim support and finally details of all local library times, mobile or otherwise - amounting in total to about 40 bits of paper.

Is it really any wonder that I and most of my neighbours bin the lot without reading anything (no recycling, don't know when!!) and then phone up the council and indignantly complain that we haven't had our recycycling dates and get it sent to us first class.

[sejintenej]

Hi Katherine,
I see your point, there are only two answers to this sort of idiocy.
1. If you really feel incensed enough ---- Get Elected ! --------- (I did !)
2. The best possible weapon against Elected Members is PUBLIC EMBARRASSMENT. Writr a good piece for your local Press,with plenty of examples, as you have done, and keep doing it. The Press love this sort of battle. However --- I don't know the political persuasion of the Gwynnedd Council, but try to avoid the local Press who are owned by, or heaviliy in support of, that particular Party ! It has happened where I am !
Go to it Girl !!!

Be prepared for unexpected consequences.
My local paper had a story that the local police station would stamp the owner's postcode on bicycles. I went there with my son and they had never heard of the service and suggested that the only place which could help is about 10 miles away - and only during office hours.
Letter to the editor telling him what I had been told by the police sergeant and then I had to go abroad on business.

I learned later that the paper had got the police to send a senior officer (pips on his shoulder) to the house in my absence to correct my thinking. The story my wife tells of how he acted is horrendous. We don't even know who the officer was or if he was actually police; they haven't had the guts to address me to my face.