The Parks and Open Spaces Section of the Borough Council employs 25 full-time maintenance staff.
During the summer period (March to October), we increase staffing levels on a temporary basis, to suit the additional work required throughout the growing season.
We have mobile teams, each equipped with a crew cab van and trailer. They are able to carry the necessary tools and machinery to perform all grounds maintenance tasks including: shrub and annual bed maintenance, grass cutting, with its associated requirements (strimming etc.) to maintain our specified standards. The Output Specification details the work of the section and the expected standards.
Grass cutting operations commence the first week of March through to the end of October. This is known as the 'growing season'.
The types of grass range from fine turf on bowling greens (requiring experienced personnel to maintain the playing surface) to general grass cutting on amenity land, housing estates, open spaces and sport pitches.
The frequency of cuts depends on the type of usage and weather conditions:
- Bowling greens are scheduled to be cut three times a week, during the growing season.
- Parks, amenity areas, open spaces, housing estates and football pitches are cut on average every two to three weeks.
- Grassed areas adjacent to flower beds e.g. Sutton Way roundabout, are scheduled to be cut on a weekly basis.
At present, the Borough Council have no direct involvement in the maintenance of highway verges e.g. "a grassed area that directly abuts the roadside".
Weed killing is undertaken as part of the grounds maintenance operation, to provide a tidy environment on the footpaths, grass surrounds and shrub beds. The safest and most environmentally friendly weed killers are used in this process. Herbicide is applied as necessary throughout the growing season by qualified staff, using modern specialist equipment.
In a typical summer season:
- We mow in excess of 18 million square metres of grass
- We plant 20,000 springs and summer bedding plants each year.
- We plant 5,000 bulbs each year.
- We maintain ...65,843... square metres of shrub beds annually.
- We maintain ...1900...square metres of annual flowerbeds.
- We maintain ...25.football pitches.
