Shepway concedes defeat on dirty streets: Cleaning to be brought back under Shepway control

Lib Dem leader, Cllr Lynne Beaumont, has welcomed news that Shepway's street cleaning service will be brought back to Shepway. Following calls from the local Lib Dems, Shepway Council has announced that street cleaning and grounds maintenance are set to return to Shepway Council's control next year.

Cllr Lynne Beaumont said:

"I have lived in Folkestone for 22 years, and never have I known the whole area to look so appalling. Streets are often ankle deep in litter, and local people and businesses are rightly exasperated. We have had enough.

"The litter crisis is making headlines week after week. This is not good enough, and it's not improving - despite the statements from Kent County Council and Shepway Leader Robert Bliss.

"Bringing street cleaning back under local control is a good step, and I welcome it. However, Shepway really need to focus on making this work. We should aim higher than to be 'top 25 per cent of councils for clean streets by 2008' - which is Shepway's stated aim.

"We need to concentrate on the basics - getting, then keeping, our streets clean. Getting, then keeping, our parks in a state we can be proud of. Ensuring our Town Centres are a credit to the area - not an eyesore. A well managed, locally run service is essential to achieving that."

Folkestone Town Councillor Tim Prater was delighted with the news. He said:

"Folkestone Town Council have been forcing this issue over the summer, from letters to the press to Town Clean-up days to show how awful the state of some our streets are. By taking this positive action, it seems we have now got some progress.

"Shepway now need to work closely with local residents and the Town Council to make a success of bringing these services back 'in-house'.

"Streets need a regular, published, cleaning schedule, so people can have confidence their road is cleaned regularly. We need a rapid reaction team, to deal with problems. We need the Town Centre cleaned regularly, and bins never to be allowed to sit overflowing. And we need a real campaign to get local residents and schools working together with the Councils to make - and keep - our area clean and tidy."

Control of street cleaning was taken away from local council officers, and transferred to Kent County Council, in a Conservative inspired cost cutting exercise two years ago.