Estates Management Policy

Garden Maintenance Scheme

South Ayrshire Council's Garden Maintenance Scheme is a grass cutting and hedge cutting service for elderly and disabled members of the community. The scheme is administered by the Capital and Revenue Team. The service is provided over the summer months. To join the scheme, the applicant must be:

Disabled or a pensioner (anyone over 60, or in receipt of 2 forms of benefit, one of which must be a disability benefit).

and

Have no other adult, 16 years or over, at home who can help with the garden.

Application forms are available at all Area Housing Offices along with information leaflets.

The service is free to council tenants who qualify for the scheme. For others, there is a charge, which may increase each year. The charge will also vary depending on when the applicant joins the scheme. For example, if the applicant joins in April, they will pay the full charge. If they join in July, they will pay a reduced charge.

The grass will be cut with a petrol lawnmower and the edges of the lawn tidied with a petrol strimmer. The gardener will not do any other work in the garden area.

The grass will be cut every 3-4 weeks. The service starts at the end of March and runs until the end of September. The grass will be cut approximately 7 times over this period.
Hedges will also be trimmed as part of this service. This will be done twice over the summer period, usually in May and August.

Applications to join the scheme are assessed at the local area housing office.

Untidy Gardens
Officers will carry out regular inspections of garden areas. Photographs will be taken of all gardens that are in an unacceptable condition. All photographs will be signed and dated by 2 officers. This is necessary in the event that they are later used as evidence in court proceedings. A first letter will be sent to these tenants reminding them of their tenancy conditions and asking them to take action to rectify the situation. A second inspection will be carried out within 14 days of the first letter. If the garden is still not in a satisfactory condition, another photograph will be taken. The tenant will be issued with a second letter , which will be followed up with a visit within 7 days of the letter being received. Officers will attempt to resolve the problem through discussion with the tenant.

Common Garden Areas
If the garden is shared then a housing officer will consult with all parties involved to establish an arrangement, which will ensure the area is maintained and that the parties share the responsibilities. If a mutual arrangement cannot be reached, then housing officers will assign responsibilities to each tenant. This decision will be binding and the tenant will be issued with a copy of the responsibilities assigned to them in writing.

If all attempts to resolve garden problems fail, officers will discuss the matter with the Area Housing Manager. Two options will be considered. Firstly, to arrange for a contractor to tidy the garden and the tenant will be invoiced for the cost. The second option will be to consider legal proceedings. The Area Housing Manager will discuss legal proceedings with the Council’s Solicitors before a decision is taken.

Legal proceedings would be raised on the grounds that the tenant is not complying with their tenancy agreement. A notice of proceedings may be served.. The Council would then apply to court for a decree on the ground that the tenant’s conduct is a nuisance or annoyance to other neighbours and in the circumstances, the Council would offer the person alternative accommodation with no garden area.

The tenancy agreement states that:

You must take your turn, with all other tenants and owner-occupiers sharing the common parts, in keeping them clean and tidy. If you share a common stair, you must also take your turn in regularly cleaning, washing and keeping tidy the common stair, its windows, banisters and any bin chute accesses. If you and the others cannot agree on the arrangements for doing this or you fail to do the work, we are entitled to decide exactly what you should do and when. Before making our decision, we will consult with you and the others. Our decision will be binding on you. If you do not do the work contained in this paragraph, we may do it ourselves and charge you for it. This is in addition to any other legal remedies open to us.

You must comply with any local arrangements for the use and sharing of the common parts including drying greens and drying areas. You must comply with any local rotas for the use and sharing of the common parts. In cases of dispute between the users of the common parts, we are entitled to decide the arrangements and rotas for the use of, and the sharing of, the common parts. Before making our decision, we will consult with you. Our decision will be binding on you.

If you have exclusive use of a garden attached to the house, you must take reasonable care to keep it from becoming overgrown, untidy or causing a nuisance (unless we have agreed to take care of it). If you fail to do this, we are entitled to decide exactly what work requires to be done so as to comply with this duty. Before making our decision, we will consult with you. Our decision will be binding on you. If you do not do the work contained in this paragraph we may do it ourselves and charge you for it. This is in addition to any other legal remedies we may have. You must not remove, chop down or destroy any bushes, hedges or trees without our written permission unless you planted them.

If you share a garden with others, you must take your turn with them to keep it from becoming overgrown, untidy or causing a nuisance (unless we have agreed to take care of it). If you and the others cannot agree on the arrangements for doing this or you fail to dthe work, we are entitled to decide exactly what you should do and when. Before making our decision, we will consult with you and the others. Our decision will be binding on you. If you do not do the work contained in this paragraph, we may do it ourselves and charge you for it. This is in addition to any other legal remedies we may have. You must not remove, destroy or chop down any bushes, hedges or trees without our written permission unless you planted them."

Hedges
There are no restrictions on the size of a hedge. However, if an overgrown hedge is causing a nuisance or annoyance to other residents then Housing Officers will refer to the Council's Neighbour Dispute Procedures for guidance on how to deal with the problem.

If a hedge is causing a traffic problem or blind spot, then the tenant will be required to trim it as necessary.

Grounds Maintenance
The Council operates a Grounds Maintenance Contract, which covers trees, shrubs, grassed areas, flowerbeds and other forms of soft landscaping. This contract is managed by Environment, Land and Property Department. The contract co-ordinator and Housing Services staff will liaise regarding any issues relating to grounds maintenance.

Compost Bins
The Council will provide any householder, residing in South Ayrshire, with a compost bin at a cost of £5. This can be used for recycling garden waste. Residents can arrange for a compost bin to be delivered to them by contacting the Waste Management Team (08457697520).