Messy neighbours. Any advice?

[James]

Just around the corner live some people whose house is always an eyesore. They currently have a rotten old mattress in the front garden. Their bins are usually on the street, often with rubbish spilling out everywhere across the pavement. Just wondering if anyone has any tips on how to tackle this? Is it worth calling the council?

[edanna]

If there is rubbish everywhere then that is an environmental health risk so it's worth giving the env health dept a call.

[Nigello]

Call the council (7525 2000 for enviro services) and explain, and offer to send photos. I'd also contact James Barber, the councillor, as he will have more ideas as to what the legal issues are.

Don't be afraid of talking to them, explaining why you feel put out and what options are open to you. Offer to help or to point him in the direction of help but say it has to be tackled and continually kept clean. Scare them with stories of rats and foxes if you must, but I don't really think that's the best option. You're in the right and they're being unreasonable.

[James]

Thanks both, will call enviro health. Might take a few sneaky pics on my phone (if I am feeling brave). It annoys me so much when people sh*t on their own doorstep. There is just no excuse for it.

[newboots]

Awful, isn't it? There are people over the road from me who must be super-consumers because their bins are always overflowing, boxes of recycling left out with no lids, huge cardboard boxes stacked up getting wet in the rain. I can't understand it because there's only 3 of them and 1 is a toddler. I don't know why it hasn't occurred to them to put some of their extra recycling in the back of their 4 x 4 and take it to Sainsburys.

[llyamah]

Southwark Council will collect up to 6 bulky waste items per household per year. See here:

http://www.southwark.gov.uk/info/200084/recycling_and_waste/1667/bulky_waste_collection/1

It's possible that your neighbors don't know about this (hence the mattress is in the front garden) or perhaps they have left the mattress out pending collection (seems unlikely from your post).

I don't know whether this is something that I would do, but you could perhaps tell them about this service in the guise that you're just trying to be a helpful neighbor, rather than a complainant.

[Ladygooner]

Book a collection on the Southwark Council website - I do this all the time for people that dump stuff on the street.

[fl0wer]

Yes, so do I.

Sometimes every street has an eyesore of old sofas and mattresses sitting around. Is it landlords? Is it tenants? Is it homeowners? Is it builders? What ails people that they don't use the disposal services which their taxes have already paid for?

Also use fixmystreet.com

[newboots]

I will say that Southwark does seem to be generally cleaner and tidier than Lambeth, where I work.

[Vik]

llyamah Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Southwark Council will collect up to 6 bulky waste

> items per household per year. See here:

Actually they'll take up to 15 items per month!

[llyamah]

Vik Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> llyamah Wrote:

> --------------------------------------------------

> -----

> > Southwark Council will collect up to 6 bulky

> waste

> > items per household per year. See here:

>

>

> Actually they'll take up to 15 items per month!

Bulky items? And are you sure that's not 15 per year?!

[rupert45]

Every household in the borough can have one collection of up to 15 bulky items each calendar month

Straight from their website.

[Vik]

llyamah Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Vik Wrote:

> --------------------------------------------------

> -----

> > llyamah Wrote:

> >

> --------------------------------------------------

>

> > -----

> > > Southwark Council will collect up to 6 bulky

> > waste

> > > items per household per year. See here:

> >

> >

> > Actually they'll take up to 15 items per month!

>

> Bulky items? And are you sure that's not 15 per

> year?!

Nope, it's in the link that YOU posted!