Will do (routine)
- Maintain in accordance with relevant wildlife legislation, includes work inside prescribed times with necessary precautions (usually between October and February / March)
Can do
- Manually maintain
- Utilise a tractor and flail where it is cost effective and funds permit
May do:
- We will undertake minor pruning to shrubs and hedges in the Summer for H&S reasons only. Reason being to prevent personal injury or a road traffic accident. A photo would help assess this. Untidy is different from unsafe.
We do not cut private shrubs, trees, or hedges. We do not cut people’s hedges etc. around their properties unless they surround a block or similar shared space. Please refer them to Citizens Advice or an age-related charity where they claim there are no family members or neighbours willing to undertake gardening for them.
Winter:
Winter shrub maintenance is undertaken October to March each season. Ad hoc maintenance is governed by growth, the weather etc and certain law.
Hedges are pruned in the Autumn / Winter season when most are dormant. Depending on the weather they can grow, and this may not be in a form that is as shaped or controlled as they would be in an ornamental garden.
We are aware of such growth and where it poses a genuine risk (e.g., seriously blocking footways or visibility around a corner when driving) we will assess and deal as is required. This does not guarantee work will be necessary but if it is we would do what is required to alleviate the risk. A photo would help assess this.
We cannot be everywhere at once and really appreciate people letting us know about overgrown hedges, shrubs, or scrub but we take a realistic view that is as sympathetic to the plant and to nature as is possible, so as to avoid cutting while it is growing. There are also many legal considerations about wildlife and permitted actions that restrict what can be done.
The wildlife and Countryside Act prevents activities between March and September (see Appendix B), it is illegal to disturb nesting birds or their nests. Where we are aware of such growth and where it poses a genuine risk (e.g., seriously blocking footways or visibility around a corner when driving) we will assess and deal as is required. This does not guarantee work will be necessary but if it is we would do what is required to alleviate the risk. A photo would help assess this.
We are more than happy for people to cut the odd stem of a rouge bramble growing out of a hedge.