CONCERN continues to be expressed by residents across the borough about the overgrown condition of cemeteries.

Cash-strapped Thurrock Council has downsized its environmental services team and extended the times between cutting and maintaining public open spaces across the borough.

This has resulted in many verges and roadsides becoming more overgrown and unsightly but the biggest impact appears to be in the borough's five council-maintained cemeteries at Chadwell St Mary, Corringham, Grays, Stanford-le-Hope and West Thurrock.

The council announced the cutbacks in February, which included 13 envoronmental service job losses. However, since then, some lost jobs have been reinstated as the council found it couldn't cope with the demand for street and pathway clearing and machinery brought in didn't do the job properly.

The council says that it is operating a 20-day working cycle cutting grass in the cemeteries, but in many messages to Thurrock Nub News, residents say that is not the case in practice.

The council's pledge on grass cutting can be found via this link.

Part of Stanford cemetery

A Nub News tour of the cemeteries this week appears to prove that resdients' concerns have validity, with grass as high as more than 18 inches in some parts of the cemeteries, with widespread weed and small bush growth.

Also, as part of the council's management of some cemeteries, it has now replaced some cemetery metal waste containers with blue plastic bins, which residents have described as 'unsightly and intrusive'.

The change is not in all the cemeteries, Stanford-le-Hope and Chadwell St Mary, for example, retain the old metal containers housed in wooden boxes.

But the blue bins are in use at the borough's biggest cemetery in Grays.

A council statement says: "Bins were changed to replace the old metal bins with lighter bins which are easier to clear, help ensure that waste is properly contained and mean cemetery bins can be emptied more efficiently.

"The old bins could be very heavy for the crews that had to collect them and their cage design meant it was possible for waste to fall through holes and out of the bin. The design of the new bins rectifies these issues.

"Additionally, they can be emptied using a waste collection vehicle, similar to those for household waste collections, except the vehicle used for cemeteries is smaller and lighter than those used for household collections.

"Previously bins had to be collected in caged vehicles which are not designed for this purpose and are less effective in collecting and transporting waste."