Councillor Maddi Bridgeman, Cabinet member for the Environment and Street Scene, has outlined the current position on grass cutting in Plymouth.
She said: “One of the new administration’s firm commitments is to make sure the Council gets the basics right, including keeping the streets clean and making the city look its best.
“During the weeks since I took up my new role on 21 May 2021 I’ve been concerned by the number of comments from residents about the amount of long grass around the city and some of the problems this is causing.
“Unfortunately, when we started in May we inherited issues caused by previous Council decisions to reduce mowing, from cutting approximately 85 per cent of all the City’s grassed areas to only approximately 50 per cent and to carry out no cutting during May to support the No Mow May initiative – without consulting people about where and how to do this.
“While grass cutting teams resumed mowing last month and have been working hard to tackle the very long grass left after one of the wettest Mays on record, we still have areas left that we accept look unloved. As a result the Council has reviewed the current mowing regime and will now cut all grass verges up to two metres in width in its entirety, all recreational areas and play areas whilst the whole policy is reviewed following consultation with ward councillors and local communities.
“No Mow May as a policy can be a good way of helping the environment by encouraging wildlife and insects and tackling species decline caused by loss of habitat and a lot of people are very supportive of this in principle. However, it needs to be well planned and focused on the right places as not all grassed areas are suitable for it.
“I am making sure that the Council learns lessons from this year and that in future we take a much more collaborative approach by listening to residents and ward councillors about which areas of grassland are suitable for designating as wildlife meadows and which are not.
“One of the lessons learned already is that if we have a very wet month like we did this May, the grass grows extremely quickly, making it very difficult to catch up afterwards.
“This also leaves a lot of clippings. This time the teams are leaving these to decompose naturally and provide a refuge for insects, while coordinating with sweeping teams to make sure any clippings on paths or roads are swept up.
“I am asking that the service does everything it can to ensure the remaining areas of long grass that are not properly designated and sign posted as wildflower meadow are be mowed as quickly as possible. The team is due to have completed the first full mowing cycle of the city by the end of next week.”
“My Council colleagues and I fully acknowledge and am grateful for residents’ patience so far while we resolve these issues and can assure them that we will listen to their feedback when planning our approach in future. I urge everyone who wants to have their say now or report issues, can do so on our grass cutting web page at: www.plymouth.gov.uk/grasscutting or by contacting their respective city councillors.”