Garden waste collection

[hammerman]

Another go at you?

Not sure what you mean Sue, but glad Renata and James could help.

[Sue]

Oh well, if you don't think your post saying "Great! Something that a simple phone call or email by Sue to Southwark could have been (sic) sorted out" was having a go, then fine.

Personally I think that was unnecessary even if it had been accurate, which it wasn't, given that I had clearly stated that I had contacted Southwark.

And you had previously described another post of mine as "a long rant".

But perhaps I have misinterpreted your posts and they were both really polite and lovely and sweet and full of the joys of Spring :))

Have a great day!

[James Barber]

Hi hammerman,

Wouldn't it be nice for residents to still be able to call or email such relatively simple problems directly to Southwark Council.

I've had residents call me in tears unable to make such calls - Southwark Council strategy is to become Digital. The council no longer advertises such numbers. If you try calling them you'll be pointedly - sometimes rudely as per some residents - told to go online. If you have no online options you'll be told to ask a family or friend to do it for you - how disabling is it for residents who can make calls NOT being allowed to be full citizens. It infantilises perfectly capable adults. In extremism after I've escalated cases an officers has called a resident.

If you can go digital and complete an online form it goes into the council and surprisingly often isn't processed in a timely manner and their is no way to ask what is going on. I get quite a lot of casework for this as well. Ideally residents would be able to call someone. An operator would then nudge whatever the problem is along.

[Sue]

James, I had a speedy response to my contact to Southwark online via the form, and they emailed me a few days later to check that I was happy with the outcome.

It didn't seem to me that the system wasn't working.

Councils are hard pressed for funding, I thought, and taking phone calls is time consuming and prone to mistakes being made in recording the details of the issue.

It is also very frustrating if nobody answers, or you keep getting voicemail and nobody calls back.

At least with the present system you get immediate acknowledgment of your issue and, if memory serves, a reference number.

I agree the present system is not ideal for those without access to a computer or without relevant knowledge, but there are libraries with computers and helpful staff.

I am ancient and manage to cope :))

And I'm not sure what is the difference between an online form and an email. I have an online form on a website and the messages from it come to me as an email to my normal email address.

BTW if I misread Hammerman's post then Hammerman, I apologise. I took it to mean that I hadn't contacted the council at all.