Firm ‘takes money for work it does not do’
Published: 01/08/2008
The Scottish Government has been asked to launch an investigation into north-east residents’ claims that a factor has taken money for work it has not adequately carried out.
Aberdeenshire councillor Martin Ford said he has been contacted by a “number of people” about the Greenbelt Group, which maintains open spaces in housing estates across the north-east.
A resident of the Redcloak estate at Stonehaven had claimed the company has not cut the grass there in more than seven months, despite having already been paid to do so.
The company disputes the time period, but admits there have been problems with a few of its contractors over the last three to four weeks.
Residents at an estate at Newmachar had also complained about the company halving the frequency of its visits.
In a letter to Community Safety Minister Fergus Ewing, Mr Ford said: “It appears that there is a widespread problem of poor or no grounds maintenance when the Greenbelt Group are responsible.
“This seems to be the case both when residents are paying on an annual basis and when the developer has paid a lump sum on completion of the development.”
The Liberal Democrat member for East Garioch added: “I have been a councillor for nine years and I have been aware of recurring problems involving the Greenbelt Group.
“I would ask you to look into the problems surrounding the operations of this company. I would also ask you to examine whether we can revert to the situation prior to 1992 where it was almost invariably the case that public open space passed to the local council.
“In my experience, the local council provides the only reliable and sustainable maintenance solution for public open space.”
Greenbelt’s managing director Alex Middleton said problems with contractors over the last three weeks have caused the company difficulties in the north-east.
He said: “Greenbelt has had problems in the north-east and are trying to resolve them as quickly as possible. We will take a look at the particular problems and value for money.
“We are committed to the sites in the north-east and are committed to giving a good service.”
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