What ARE we paying council tax for?!!

[Lollypopzmummy]

Our usual collection is on a Thursday.

The local refuse collection is on strike, nothing was sent out to anyone to notify them of this.
I phoned the council on Wednesday, after being told by MIL about the strike, the woman said "oh, you'll probably still have your's collected cos you're so close to the city centre". BIG FAT LIAR!!! No-one had their's collected, even those right in the city centre and were not even scheduled to have done!

So, we've now got 2 week's worth sat outside (we forgot to put it out last week ) and it probably wont be collected until Thursday. We shouldn't really take it to the tip, because had a car accident a couple of weeks back and is using a hired car and we CANNOT get it dirty as we can't afford to!

I suggested packing the whole lot up and dumping it on the doorstep of the council offices for them to come face to face with on Monday morning (and looking at the weather it'll be humming! ), but that's just unreasonable isn't it, instead we should just leave it on our own doorstep to attract vermin.

Seriously, if anyone's got any bright ideas about the best way to deal with this please feel free to throw them my way.
xXx

[lulumama]

it was in the local papers here about how the industrial action was going to affect bin collection... nothing you can do except bite the bullet and wait for the collection

or put something down in the boot of the hire car and take the bags to the tip

i have an old travel blanket i use in the boot when i have to go to the tip

[1973]

line the boot with bin bags/paper and take to dump. simple really.

[Lollypopzmummy]

The only thing we've got is towels and I've already got tons of washing to catch up on. Thnik I might just have to leave it until the next collection then, I just hope they're ready for the extra bags sat next to the bin! Will they take those aswell or will they only take what's inside the bin?

[Flamesparrow]

People have a right to strike.

Line the boot and take it to the tip.

[Lollypopzmummy]

I've got no objection to the strike, it's the local council they're crap generally, no organisational skills, and apparently they are incapable of using a calculator (HB issues with them, ongoing for about 3 years now).

[lulumama]

no idea how your collections work

ours are every other week and they only take the contents of the wheelie bin

go and buy a cheap blanket from dunelm and take the bags.

[RustyBear]

Well, it's not actually the council's fault you had two week's worth is it? Lots of councils only collect every two weeks anyway.

And calling the womam on the phone a big fat liar is a bit harsh - you were probably the hundredth person the poor woman had spoken to with the same question to which she had no answer - striking workers don't have to tell their employers they are going to strike & she was probably trying to do the best she could with the information she had at the time.

[1973]

so you get annoyed that its not collected but wouldnt actually go as far as to dispose of it yourself?
cant be that bothered about it then. people are entitled to strike, its an unusual circumstance. a bit of flexiility on your part and there is no problem at all.

[ruddynorah]

you are just cross at yourself for forgetting to put it out last week AND having a car accident which means you have a hire car you can't get dirty.

[overthemill]

the strike has been talked about for several months. take it yourself to the tip. btw you pay council tax for: education, libraries, refuse collection, recycling facilities, planning, sport and leisure facilties eg parks, museums, playgrounds, meals on wheels, regeneration, social services, parking enforcement, cremetoriums and cemetries, road repairs, policing, fire and rescue service plus quite few other things i can't remember. Jolly good value I reckon even if they once miss your bin

[twinsetandpearls]

I always have 2 weeks worth of rubbish as we are on a 2 weekly cycle.

It would not be a particularly effective strike if noone was inconvenienced

[nametaken]

I'm glad I don't live next door to you if you have 2 week old refuse dumped outside your house because you can't be bothered to take it down the dump.

It's people like you who give people on housing benefit a bad name.

[twinsetandpearls]

Was that addressed to me? I am not on housing benefit but fail to see the relevance. Everyone here has 2 weeks worth of rubbish but it is not dumped it is in my wheelie bins!

[twinsetandpearls]

Oh I see that was at OP, but again see no relevenace of the housing benefit jibe.

[overthemill]

why oh why do people slag off people on HB? grrr. 2 week old rubbish is pretty common these days with alternate week collections. it can be annoying but it is more cost effective for councils to do it this way (or they could increase council tax?). trade union members have the right to strike., council workers in general don't get paid high wages and that's what the strike was about.

[Alambil]

WTF? People on HB a bad name because they have 2 weeks' rubbish?! You're barking!

Our council have bi-weekly collections; I can fit all our rubbish in the bin for that.

Do you recycle and stuff too? Could you take the clean plastics / paper to the recycling centre and then the amount left would perhaps fit in the bin? (therefore not on the street to fester)

[overthemill]

i get really warm and cosy when i only have 2 bags of rubbish in teh bin on bin day - 1 for each week. ok so i'm a bit sad...

[mazzystar]

get better at recycling
respect public sector workers' right to strike

[3kids1cat]

Actually I have to say I'm feeling similar to the op. We haven't had ours collected either, and with a large family we have had to resort to putting our black bags in the back garden as our bin is already over full, and yes I remembered to put it out last week. My paper recycling box hasn't been collected either, so it's not that I don't recycle. I don't have a car, so unless I took it to the tip on the bus I have no choice but to leave it where it is, to rot and get pulled open by cats. Even if I did have a car, I'd still be annoyed, not with the bin men for striking, which they are entitled to, although they could also look for another job if they are that fed up. I do think the council could have given people more warning, and arranged for contractors to come in and do the job this week instead,and I'm sure you'll all come back with, but then they'd increase council tax, well they throw money away on ridiculous unnecessary things all the time so they should be able to cover the basics.

[Sidge]

Buy a tarpaulin from B&Q for a few quid then take it to the tip.

Our bins are only emptied 2 weekly anyway (alternating normal refuse and recycling bin) so if we have masses we take it to the tip in between times.

[Lollypopzmummy]

Thank you 3kids1cat, I think most people have got the wrong end of the stick here. I'm NOT having a go at the men that are striking (FGS they have verey reason to strike!), more at the lack of consideration of the ocuncil to let people know WHEN the strike would be happening (they did last year, very successfully).

Even if we weren't using a hired car, DH is injured and I can't drive yet (otherwise I'd happily take it myself).

It will be 3 weeks worth of refuse and I DO RECYCLE better than anyone else in this village (who I am now rather worried about as the majority of them are OAP's who can't drive and, as they're not recycling enough, have a lot more refuse than we do!).

All I'm saying is that, if they managed it last year, why could the council not notify us this year when the strike would take place?

For what reason am I giving people on HB a bad name?

[Lollypopzmummy]

BTW our council tax has recently gone up (again) and we're struggling with paying our rent as it is (and our rent is the cheapest in our area as we live in a private Estate house).

The council are currently spending all their money on building pretty new offices for themselves that, by the time the building work is finished in 2009, will be completely useless as the council are moving site to a different part of the city!!

[llareggub]

Blimey, every newspaper, radio broadcast and news item has confirmed the strike dates. Every council website has listed the dates. You clearly knew about the strike, so what exactly did you want the council to tell you? Or did you want the council to write directly to you?

[Lollypopzmummy]

No it was in the local newspaper last year but not this year, that's all.