Just a general gripe as i moved from a larger detached in the city, to smaller (less bedrooms) semi in the county my council tax is now about 30% more and my bin collections only once fortnightly as opposed to once weekly in the city. I rang the council when my first bill arrived as thought there must be a mistake.
I’m on mat leave (yes I have too much time on my hands) and have been visiting the local park quite frequently, often 2/3x a day when running, walking the dog and baby. I’ve noticed that there’s usually 2-4 vehicles belonging to “groundsmen” parked outside the clubhouse (which is not open to the public). The groundsmen do not empty the bins, another vehicle arrives for that, they do not cut the grass, again the mower comes on another vehicle. There is also an external security firm that arrives 30mins prior to the groundsmen in the morning and they unlock the gates, they then return to lock the gates at night. So WTF do the groundsmen do all day and what’s their role? It’s not a particularly large park, the toilets are only open at peak times, like the school holidays in the middle of the day. I thought initially it must be a hobby for them to sit in the clubhouse and occasionally shuffle some cricket equipment around, but a local councillor confirmed they’re on the payroll. I’ve lived in other similar sized towns and not seen a groundsmen more than when the grass needs cutting, let alone daily.
So basically AIBU to think this is totally excessive and the frivolous spending of the local authority reflected in the hefty council tax!