Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Hedge out of control - who to talk to at the council?
Anyone who walks up Wightman on the left hand side will probably know, there's a bush on the corner of Seymour/Warham (can't remember which) that massively encroaches onto the pavement space.
The house looks deserted, so I'm not sure the owner/tenants will be bothered.
There's car parking directly next to it and it's got so out of control now that if there are cars parked there, it's impossible to get through unless you limbo or crouch right down - I have 2 kids and even they have to crouch to get under it.
Is there a council department that should take care of this?
Any ideas would be appreciated (sensible ones) as it's really obstructing the pavement.
Thanks in advance
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Hugh on
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How about giving the neighbourhood action team a go. Please come back and tell us how you got on.
I remember as a child, my mother receiving a knock on the door from a policeman one afternoon. He explained that one of the trees in our front garden was overhanging the pavement too low and asked if we would mind trimming it back. Doesn't that sound quaint from today's perspective.
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....or, I've just noticed, if you click through on our Report a Problem link (Eyes Right!), they have a link specifically for that issue.
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Permalink Reply by cara howard on
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Fabulous. Thanks.
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Permalink Reply by Alan Stanton on
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Hugh is spot-on, Cara. A local council has power to deal with the problem. Though initially a polite request often works exactly as Hugh describes. So it's not so quaint.
But a legal notice can be served and, if necessary, the work done and the cost recovered.
It's funny how people owning a hedge or an overhanging tree simply don't consider the problem say, for a blind or partially sighted person. Or other dangers.
(Tottenham Hale ward councillor till 2014)
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Thanks. I have now reported it and will update if/when anything is done.
It's doubly worrying as the wall that the hedge sits behind has significant cracks in it - probably due to the weight of the hedge, and looks like it could also collapse.
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You can report it to Building Control and ask them to inspect and take action if necessary. (It often isn't.)
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Permalink Reply by John McMullan on
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A "polite" knock on the door from a policeman carries a fair amount of weight. "Polite" requests from pretty much anyone else are routinely ignored in Harringay.
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Permalink Reply by pamish on
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I had a letter here once instructing me to cut back the ivy from our front wall. Dont know who had done the walk which produced the notice, some neighbours got one too. Could be the street cleaners as yes the hedge was out along the edge of the pavement and tangled with litter. Wouldn't mind but I never liked the ivy, it was planted by the other flat, I got the letter as the deeds to the front yard are with my flat.
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Permalink Reply by L F T Snowflake on
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I know exactly the place you mean, I walked up there the other day too and thought the same thing. Its becoming a real pest. Mind, rather than waiting for the council, might it be quicker for someone to just turn up with a rechargable set of hedge clippers and simply cut it back? There is a right that if a tree is encroaching onto your garden, then you can cut it back and throw the clippings back. Surely the same rule would apply here.
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Permalink Reply by Martha on
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I used to complain to the council about this hedge every year - as I was fed up with having to push childs pushchair out into busy Wightman Road every day (especially at night). Said child has now grown up and I don't walk that way home anymore! The council did always cut it back - quite drastically. Lets hope they are still just as responsive.
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But Martha, it really shouldn't need regular complaints from residents before something gets done - either by a landowner, or a resident, or by Council officers. Nobody pushing a buggy, or in a wheelchair, or simply walking along a pavement, should have to go into a busy road to get round an overgrown hedge. And certainly not to find the same problem recurring every year.
But there are now far too many of these examples where obvious "street" problems are not spotted or reported. And the numbers seem to be increasing.
We used to have a Community Volunteers scheme which helped tackle this. But - with deep stupidly - this has been allowed to shrivel away.
Despite the cuts, the Council and its contractors still have staff walking or driving down the borough's streets. Of course, I appreciate why people with particular tasks (and who are probably closely managed and timed) aren't able to keep stopping to report problems like dumping, faulty street lights etc.
But with fewer staff, the challenge is to design work systems which co-ordinate different teams, departments and even agencies whose staff are "out and about". And to make it as easy as possible for all of them to spot and cross-report problems rapidly and with minimum extra work. Unless this happens - and soon - well-intentioned ideas such as the "Single Frontline" will quickly become a joke.
Of course, staff also need straightforward access to information sent by residents. I still cannot believe the sheer conservatism of Haringey and other organisations which block many social media websites to their staff. Including access to the organisation's own sites on Facebook, Flickr, etc.
Although perhaps I should believe it and stop being surprised how fusty, musty and backward-looking large parts of the Council remain.
Fortunately, this is not true of everyone. The very positive response Hugh has got about street trees is a good counter-example showing how Haringey staff are willing to listen, learn, and change.
(Tottenham Hale ward councillor)
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Well, I reported the hedge on Monday and today they are there trimming it back. A skip has arrived to take the debris.
Impressed with the council. Well there's a first time for everything!
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