A HOUSING association has been criticised for carrying out “poor quality” maintenance on green spaces in a village near Newton Aycliffe.

Great Aycliffe Town Cllr Bill Blenkinsopp has been approached by a number of people living in Aycliffe Village who are unhappy about grassy areas which they claim has left the place looking shabby.

Residents of St Andrew’s Close have blasted Livin, which is responsible for maintaining the patches, for the standard of upkeep compared to other parts of the village maintained by Great Aycliffe Town Council.

“I’ve had a lot of complaints from people and I totally agree with them,” said Cllr Blenkinsopp. “It drags the place down and it’s not fair. It’s not in keeping with the rest of the village and enough is enough. They should come and do the job properly.”

People living in St Andrew’s Close have complained about the infrequency of grass being cut, grass being left when it has been cut and grass being left to die.

Michael Burnside, who has lived on St Andrew’s Close for 50 years, said: “We have to look at poisoned dead grass and it’s not what we’re paying taxes for. We want the same treatment that the rest of the village gets because this used to be a beautiful area.”

The Livin-owned garages in the close, which are rented for around £8 a week, have been another source of frustration - with paint peeling off and the roof falling away.

“The garages are in disrepair and nothing has happened to sort the problem out,” added Mr Burnside, 70. “It’s gone from a nice tidy place to a disgrace and it’s totally unfair.”

Meanwhile Livin’s move to pull the plug on free garden maintenance for tenants in April this year has continued to cause concern for those unable to look after their gardens.

Cllr Blenkinsopp said: “There are a lot of people who are ill who can’t manage or don’t have a family but these gardens should also be kept to a high standard.”

Paul Proud, head of property services for Livin, said: “We are in the early stages of a new grounds maintenance contract and are experiencing some teething problems in response to which temporary additional resources have been put in place and extra cuts are underway to catch up on the programme.”

To report any problems residents can email openspaces@livin.co.uk