Northumberland County Council Reviews 41

I was just informed this morning from your team have a 3 month back log to respond to an email. This is a broken process and needs addressing asap. You have caused me multiple issues and think you are an absolute disgrace. You may want to recover the overpayments you have paid to ex staff members to pay for more staffing. Joke.

Just an all round disgusting council to many problems to list

Two blown out tyres on car 03/02/24 due to pothole on Hauxley road .Tried claiming off Council insurance as pothole was first reported on 08/01/24 to be told it was councils policy to review for up to 60 days before making a decision.Surprise - no decision after 60 days so contacted them only to get an answer machine.Left a message asking to be contacted as councils own deadline had elapsed .Phone call following day to say I would have decision by close of business.Bigger surprise received communication denying liability at 1630 ( presumably on way out of door).
So on top of wasting an entire saturday waiting for AA recovery I am now out of pocket for 2 tyres .What a shambles!

A joke. Penny pinching off the poor to line their own pockets, money grabbing fat cats. Making the poor poorer and don't give a 💩. Joke

Update on our petition: Justice For Jack now has medical evidence proving staff at Northumberland County Hall were involved in abuse and manslaughter of the elderly.

Support our campaign: House of Lords: Northumbria Police Force cover ups of abuse of the elderly @change.org

Justice For Jack is demonstrating at Northumberland County Hall and Forth Banks Police Station in 2024 in preparation for court proceedings

This review goes out to the Safeguarding Team in the council. I sent them 4 emails as a whistleblower about safeguarding issues in a care home and they ignored every email, did not respond. I telephoned them and got sent around in circles, no where further forward. As a whistleblower I feel let down by them. In the past I had a very similar issue and I have a 10 page apology letter with the conclusion of lessons to be learnt... "to listen more to whistleblowers by communicating with them". It is clear that they have not learnt any lessons and history is repeating itself. I feel sorry for anyone that goes into a care home if this is the protection that the safeguarding team offer. I am disappointed and disgusted with this councils safeguarding team. I will be taking this further and to the press.

I would mark 0 if I could. Whilst on holiday in Northumberland at 10pm I was diverted through a housing estate due to a closed road A1061. No work was being done and subsequently I received a fine for driving in a bus lane ! I appealed stating that I hadnt been aware of the area and obviously wouldnt have driven in a bus lane had I known but at 10pm I was the only car on the road and no buses were even running. The reason bus lanes are in place are to ease congestion for buses during busy times. Interestingly Rishi Sunack is currently advising councils to stop 24 hr bus lanes and only use them during busy times and not to use them as income earners which is what this council is obviously doing. As there wasn't any roadworks being undertaken, I am convinced that this was just an income earner and its disgusting. Shame on you.

Lack of undrrstanding or empathy!!!!!!!
Very confusing especially in Hexham why have a pay machine in a free carpark!!!!!, the parking situation is not ideal for anyone visiting from out of the area who doesn't have a disk. So i paid £4 for parking which is extortionate, then got a ticket aswell. If you dont have a disk you cant get parked but you will get ticket trying to find a disk!!!!
After visiting another carpark in your Borough this week which had no pay and display just to point out! and where it was impossible to park aswell so many red bays where empty and no white bays available at all so whats the point of a free carpark you cant park in!!!!! When I managed to find a red disk which is impossible to even get one, I will happily drive around with your expensive disk in my car just incase I have to visit so I can park. Obviously your making too much money from people paying 25 pounds and paying parking but just to point out you would make more charging people to park I assure you.
No refund of my £4 which should be returned, just another example of a council lining their pockets with ridiculous schemes!!!!!

I would like to say that the planning department is manned and ran by a bunch of incompetent and unqualified aholes but that would be disrespectful to aholes as they adequately function on a daily basis. The deceitful nature of this department to alter submitted planning documents without notification is a disgrace. Officers from this department have deliberately lied to cover their tracks. I would not wish this authority on anyone, they have no strategic housing assessment and misspelled signs all over the county, what a joke, it’s just a pity no one is laughing.

A lot of medical information given in a wheel chair have specific requirements and I have just been informed that it’s upto them if I can move and ware to and not down to medical letters from doctors to autistic team to health visitors etc in months of complaining I was told by a member of there staff to try to commit suicide to get moved on the banding quicker n when we complained they refused to investigate there bullying us my mental health is over 70% have now been told it’s physical abuse as well we have tried ringing corporate complaints and get no ware been to c.a.b again no help is there anyone who can help legally please at wits end back into self harming they said there ot was best person as knows me best but we nvr met she has no signed form to talk about me but she is she has access to medical information and knows we need moved and can’t use stairlift but tried forcing me to have one can’t use one as seriously I’ll with cognitive reasons bt ombudsman won’t do anything for 12 months.

What an appalling assistance.
Reported a damaged fence - by the latest storm last month - and I was dismissed with such an abusive/dis-interested language first, by a guy that conveniently refused to say his name and claimed was from the council ringing from 07855124278, and then via email from essentially telling me that it wasn't their responsibility; Stephen Wa rdle divisional manager, extremely professional in dismiss me.

The area where the damaged fence was reported it is NOT on my property but in the public area maintained by the council (they clean - once in the past 10 years - the weeds and cut the grass regular I would say) in that area that they claim isn't their responsibility??? Course I don't own the ground at Newcastle airport but I do maintenance there for free, just like Northumberland council maintains the area I have reported for no reasons other than just charity oriented gestures!!!!!
Realised the area and ground were within their boundaries and decided to wash their hands by passing the matter on to Miller Homes, so that they can pretend they looked into it.

Not to mention the damaged area has exposed fully the top part of my back garden where my kids play, so that everyone can look into our private garden and kids are two scare to play in the garden in case dogs just walk in.....as the council also monitors that issue as well.

On top of that , after ignoring my several emails and calls regarding this issue, they had the audacity to send me the new bill for this year council tax like we don't exist, we are plebe after all.

IF they have to put something right, then they don't have time not their priorities, but when it comes to collect money from households have no problems at all.....£267 a month in council tax I pay and have no service for it and no assistance whatsoever for all the issue that I am facing or when its my turn to claim for those services that "allegedly" are included with the council taxes charges.....unless it doesn't suit their agenda!!!!
Should see the grounds and communal area around the side of my front garden, seemed like Jumanji last year in July, with wild weeds growing uncontrolled over my own fence and inside my garden forcing me to weed something that according to them I am paying for via the council tax. But that wasn't their priority either......after all they can only take money from us, never give us support. But if one little branch of a tree grows out where the road is then they send you threating letter to sort it immediately....double standards for you!!!!!

Hopeless. Tried to get out of Ponteland yesterday. Three different sets of temporary traffic lights on Darras Rd, Middle Drive, top road to the A69. No one working and all the work seemed to be on the pavement. Considerable traffic disruption for no obvious reason. The use of these unnecessary traffic lights is now becoming more rampant than Covid.

Serious issue when applying to jobs. Lengthy process, yet no response, not even a rejection email. Apparently after 10 weeks you're supposed to accept the rejection. It takes very little administrative power to send out an application outcome in a timely manner, it's an automated process.

Fell behind on my council tax at the beginning of the year due to my wife losing her job and other factors. I received a summons to court for non-payment and I called the council to ask for advice. I spoke to a lovely woman who said not to worry and to let it pan out until the case was heard, then I'd get the paperwork with the relevant details on to pay etc.. The court hearing was on the 20th June, I heard nothing about this until 31st July when a debt collector letter appeared in my wife's name (bizarrely) relating to the debt (which had been passed onto a debt collector and presumably never been near a court?) I called the council to query this and was told that because I didn't stick to an agreement set up in May (no agreement was made) my details have been passed to a debt collector, I brought up the conversation that I'd had with the colleague back in June regarding the court and waiting etc and they said they have no record of that conversation at all, the woman's attitude was disgusting, making out that I was some kind of idiot that wouldn't pay my bills.. They can stick their council tax now, send me to prison or whatever, I'm done with arguing with people...

Very helpful lady on phone. Quick response & efficient repair of waste bin. Got to give credit where it's due. Thanks

When every you ring up Northumberland County Council to speak to someone to have a repair reported they never answer the phone. You are on hold. I have a time limit of 10 minutes and then I hang up. I have tried three times now, thats 30 minutes. What is on their customer charter for a response time?

I have been calling the council since last Wednesday to purchase bins. Initial call just told to call back as could not take payment over the phone and the details about bins not explained.
So called back next day and then found out that to have my large bin that I have had for the past 10 years, I now need to have permission. Left details for call back. I was told I would get a call back in 48 hours.
I called on Monday and was told I would get a call back.Its Wednesday and I am still waiting for this call back to buy a bin.
At one point I was told I should have just taken my old bins to my new property !!
If thats the case why do I now need permission to buy/have the same size bins at my new property?

When I purchased my property there was not the same long drawn out process for taking my money for the Council tax. So why is it so hard to buy a bin/pay over the phone and get a call back?
Why not let people order & pay online for their bin?

I am extremely unhappy with the level of service that has been offered to myself in the recent weeks. Northumberland council needs to improve its service considerably, especially for such an essential service as waste disposal.