Melksham in a mess

A RESIDENT in Melksham has described conditions near his home as “like living in a Third World country” after bins were left unemptied by the council. 

Robert Wright contacted the Melksham News about a waste bin near to the bridge over Clackers Brook at the end of Primrose Drive after it was left overflowing. Wiltshire Council had failed to empty it despite several complaints from local residents. Two other bins nearby at the end of Westbury View and a bin behind the houses at the end of Primrose Drive were said to be in the same condition.

The bin over Clackers Brook was pictured on Christmas Eve with rubbish spilling out onto the footpath and this, along with the state of the two other nearby overflowing bins, led to Robert contacting the council on four occasions before it was finally dealt with on the 11th January.  Robert said, “It was like living in a Third World country. I emailed Wiltshire Council  about all three bins being full on the 26th of December, and the 4th of January. I also phoned the council and reported the state of the bins on the 7th and 8th of January before it was cleared on the 11th.

“Rightly, a lot of council workers were busy dealing with floods over that period, but the answer is a bigger bin and more regular emptying – particularly before the staff go on their Christmas holiday. In Thyme Road there are large litter bins together with separate dog bins, and all are seen by hundreds of people each day as they drive by. The bin in my picture is only seen by a small number of pedestrians. Is the fact that those bins in Thyme Road did not overflow, whilst the one in Primrose Drive did just a coincidence? Who knows?”

A Wiltshire Council spokesman said, ““We are sorry to hear there were issues with these three bins over the Christmas period. These bins are usually emptied weekly, however with the changes to collection times over the festive period, combined with council teams being called out to assist with flooding issues that we experienced across the county at this time, this resulted in some delay to collections.

“We’re grateful to the resident for highlighting this matter and these bins have now been emptied. They will continue to be emptied weekly. We would advise anyone who has a concern to contact us via 0300 4560100 and we will do our best to respond as swiftly as possible.”