Reading Borough Council Reviews 70

EVERY year we go through this. The festival arrives, the council spend money putting up signs in residential streets close to the festival. Then we get dozens of festival cars abandoned on our gardens, verges some actually try to park in our private driveways and abandone them for 5 days. The council signs say 'you will be towed' but when we call the council to have them towed they say 'oh we can't enforce those' infuriating waste of time and tax payers money. Typical Reading Council - do something to make it look like we give a damn and support residents but actually we'll sit on out thumbs and do nothing - as long as it makes money. Council staff are so rude when you call, they really are one of the worst councils I have ever cone across. I'd give zero stars if I could

As others have said, they're an awful council. I had a parking ticket left on my car, despite having a valid ticket displayed in my windscreen. I couldn't understand why? I contacted Reading to ask, and was told that they consider "AM" to be from "8am until 2pm" and "PM" to be from "2pm to 10am?!" They are the only people in the world that think like this, and i suspect this is a scam that they can get lots of money out of people. I had a ticket in the morning, and then swapped it out at midday to a PM ticket, but they still want to fine me. Disgraceful.

RBC are putting people's lives at risk.
They are bullies. I am disgusted by their refusal to help the people in their community and I am appalled by their abject lack of competence. Someone close them down before more lives are destroyed.

Worst council all over uk, messed up with my council tax..i hope and pray that they change their system they are a bully

Absolutely shocking service left with no gas for what will be 5 days because of their refusal to come and check for a carbon monoxide leak. Not an emergency, no heating hot water or cooker for 5 days and i pay them rent, what a joke Reading Council are, you couldn't make it up

Useless, unhelpful full of clowns.

Not the best concil at all rude staff hang up on you and even refuse to help

Utterly appalling! As an organisation that’s primarily built on tax payers money and is meant to serve the public have no other job than to threaten people with ‘emails’ and accuse people of criminality if it goes against their agenda!!!

Absolutely appalled by this council, continously delaying granting me and my family justice from their unjustifiable inhumane and inappropriate behaviour.
They protect their own rather than actually be professionals and stick to doing their jobs.
We are just puppets to them, they can feel free to happily discriminate and be unkind whenever they want and believe they are allowed to get away with this. Absolutely disgusting how inhumane this council is, we are all human beings. None of us are better than another, we are equal. Therefore use the position you're in to do great things and not to be unjust.

I am completely stunned by how RBC have become bullies towards their own local community. I am heard about how many times they've refused help to those who need it based on their own bias opinions. I am sorry but a council isn't a council when bullying is present. Infact I've also heard from an ex colleague whom worked for RCB included in their statement that they were bullied based upon race. But the ethnic on 'white british' were heard and listened to more. Hearing this from an ex colleague really made my heart shiver. I dont think Reading is the place to move. Other councils are beautifully dealing with their local community without all this havoc but RBC seem to be stuck up their own bluddy bottoms. It's about time to grow up. The reviews have put me off.

If I could give less than a star I would. I have read all the emails exchanged between rbc and a close member of the community and am disgusted.

Since April I have been having the worst time with reading borough council.
Looking at the reviews they are bad.
It's time for a change of staff in my opinion so that the change can make reading borough council a better place to visit.
My experience with the adult team has left me tired and drained.
I can't believe the threats I am getting writing on this site by them.
You are support to work with me and sort things out and not cover up your mistakes. You are support to work with families and not cover up your staffs mistakes and not threat the family.

I expected to collect our red bin, but they skip it my one once I asked them why they even looked me and keep going working away. They didn't come a week before and once they appear today with poor behaving.
When comes to collect Council tax bill it will work automatically without out any issue. Very disappointed. Poor management in terms of every aspects. Hope someone come and fixed this place properly.

One of the worst run places I have ever seen in the UK. There is a feeling that it is like an old american gangster movies, where the council is corrupt, you see crime rate increase, roads damaged and getting dirtier every day, but on the other hand you see construction companies getting new permits to do what they want. It is just shocking overall. Rubbish everywhere, roads are a mess. I complained a few times and they just said it does not meet the condition to actually fix the roads. But honestly when I drive in Reading I forget that I am in the UK, looks like a city from a 3rd world country. Council tax is being increased significantly every year and I don’t really know what it is spent on. This city is going from bad to worse. I hope something is done otherwise I wouldn’t advice anyone to move and live here especially with family.

I'd give a zero star if I could. Reading borough council is a corrupted organisation milking taxpayers' money. Social services are shockingly incompetent. Social workers have no ear to listen to the vulnerable and manipulative. They keep saying that they don't have money to help those who are genuinely in need. But surprisingly a couple of members from their management team get paid by the council nearly a thousand pounds a day with two year contract. This doesn't sound right to me at all. Whose decision is it? Certainly, not mine!

If I could leave no stars I would as they are an absolute disgrace of a council! I requested for 3 bulky items to be collected on 24/11 for collection on 7/12 (I'd called a few times before then and they were being extremely difficult with booking in a date for me). This cost me the sum of £50 only for them to not actually collect anything on the date. I then called on 10/12 to request a refund and for them to actually do their jobs properly, I was told they would look into it. I then proceeded to call on 16/12, 18/12 and again today on 22/12 only to be told they have already collected it and as a gesture of goodwill they would collect the rest!!! God knows what they collected before as it certainly wasn't the requested furniture. I will most definitely be hounding them for my refund and for them to actually do their jobs properly!

Reading have been run incompetently for decades ....an MP few years back wanted Reading Council investigated?!
Nothing ever changes with the corrupt council and most of its employees milk it (especially contract staff) for everything they can (it's a known click there?!

Lol (jokers council....just note the reviews (they tell u everything u need to know?!

Awful customer service. Extremely rude staff.
They should really review the very badly signed bus lanes that keep catching people out and dishing out PCNs.

The research revealed that Reading made £2,176,571 in PCNs in the last year!

In March I accidentally drove into bus lane whilst lost going to job interview. Never driven in Reading b4 as live in Bristol. I was so lost that I missed the interview. Got a fine for this that I couldn’t pay as I was out of work. This was doubled to £90. Wrote to council to explain this was accidental, I didn’t know the area what and that I’m not working & now have cancer (since end of May) and that I don’t have the money. Today I got a Recovery Order with an extra £8 added to bill. Atrocious customer empathy & service & just another stress to deal with after 2 cancer ops & preparing for chemo. Do they really need the £90? I know things are bad, but seriously this is unbelievable. That said, looking at other reviews, the general public appear to give poor ratings about them too.

Awful. Never answer calls, we've had our bins taken with no announcement and for no reason. They are a parasite on the town, do nothing but put their snouts in the trough. Useless.