Earlier, I happened to spot a letter from my local council, which had got stuck in my letterbox.
The letter was from the housing officer, stating that she had received concerns that my garden is becoming very overgrown, and affecting the fence line separating my garden from my next-door neighbour's.
In addition to stating the fence is my responsibility, the letter helpfully explains that all gardening assistance schemes have been withdrawn and that there is no help available to clear and maintain gardens for any tenants. In other words, if I am unable to tackle my own garden, then it's a matter of paying for someone else to do it. Either way, the housing officer will visit NEXT FRIDAY (25th) to inspect the progress of my garden clearance, and agree on a timescale for completion.
The most frustrating thing of all is that I know how much of an eyesore my garden is. If it wasn't for the fact that my physical and mental health issues have had a tendency to throw a spanner in the works, I would have been putting my array of gardening tools to use long ago, and not allowed my garden to get into such an overgrown state.
My next-door neighbour and I have always had a good relationship, so I don't believe that she was behind the complaint. If she did have any concerns, I feel sure she would discuss them with me amicably first. However, I do feel it quite possible that the neighbours living next-door to my immediate neighbour are probably responsible. Rather than attempting to calmly discuss concerns with neighbours, it seems their preferred approach is to go straight to the council and make a complaint.
Anyway, having previously been in rather a good mood, the same cannot be said now.
Edited to add:
Some months ago it came to light that my local council had referred itself to the Regulator of Social Housing, after data on safety checks in homes was found to be missing. As a result of this, my council has been using the services of a building surveyor firm to undertake stock condition surveys of council homes.
My next-door neighbour informed me a short while ago that during a recent inspection of her home, she now fears she had put her foot in it. She had been asked if the fence between our gardens was hers. She had said it wasn't. For the record, I think the fence dates back to when my home had been built, possibly back in the 1960s. When I moved into my home more than 20 years ago, the fence was in a dire state and falling apart then.
Anyway, when the surveyor had been inspecting my next-door neighbour's home, he had obviously seen the state of my garden and mentioned it to the council. Knowing that none of my neighbours had made a complaint has helped to calm me down a little. I feel guilty enough about the state of it, as it is.
