Tunbridge Wells Borough Council Reviews 31

Very poor at getting back to you regarding complaints. I'm still waiting after over a month on the usual subject of refuse collection and the mess they leave continuously. They've also had the cheek to put a sticker on the front of our bin saying no food in here after I complained that the dustmen were dumping food waste from the orange and black bins in the brown bins to save a journey. Lazy and bone idle. This is why we no longer use the food waste recycling anymore. It's not them that has to clean them out either! Clueless.

I had written to the CEO about being overcharged for the use of the car park. Legally, Council car parks are expected to offer a 10 minute grace period when returning to their car. I was two minutes over the hour and thereon, charged £3.50 as opposed to the £2.20 for the hour.

I had sent the photo of the tickets and article from the AA website relaying Councils are to offer this service. TWBC have not adhered to this belief and penalise at any opportunity. The CEO will not admit or conform to what should be a legal obligation to the customer. TWBC response is unhelpful and not conducive to encouraging people to go into the town centre.

Its not much money, its about principal. TWBC do not provide value for money.

Royal Tunbridge Wells Council should be utterly ashamed. Their treatment of disabled and vulnerable visitors is appalling. I provided clear evidence that I was eligible to park, explained that I had suffered a medical emergency as a diabetic, and highlighted that the RingGo system failed due to a poor signal. Yet they coldly forced me to pay a PCN.

Their response was robotic, dismissive, and cruel. Instead of offering support to a visitor in genuine distress, they chose to penalise me. They demanded medical evidence as if a vulnerable person is expected to produce hospital letters on the spot in order to avoid punishment. That is not just unreasonable – it is discriminatory.

Councils exist to serve the public, not to exploit them. By ignoring the needs of disabled drivers and vulnerable visitors, Tunbridge Wells has revealed itself to be anti-disabled and more interested in extracting money than showing basic humanity.

If you are disabled or have a medical condition, beware: this council will not show you compassion, only contempt.

PCN: TW77003998

Don't deserve one star but can't comment without.
They are a very hard, unkind, not to be trusted, unhelpful , waste a lot of money on staff comforts instead of residents in the borough.
They thrive on letting more and more eating places open in the town, when many are closing. Not a good council to be under.
Personally I have suffered great hardship due the council , them having just struck again this weekend.

If I could give zero I would.
After a meeting I was told to phone Benefits. After an hour the line was dropped. After half hour I got though "Wrong department" !
After an hour to next call I was connected. The line was dropped after 5 questions, without a reason.
Running a call centre is not difficult if senior management care. This lot don't.

Hi.
Spoke to a very nice lady on the phone this morning very very helpful and polite keep up the good work.

DANGER! Do not use Tunbridge Wells council building control !! Go private after planning was given building control put every obstacle in the way to stop the new build going ahead and then withdrew the planning consent and told us to reapply this has cost us thousands of pounds PLEASE DONT DO THIS !!!!!

My garden waste bin was missed numerous times in 2024 and was finally cleared 5 months later after the subscription renewal lapse .I find it amazing how they take money for a rubbish service .
To add insult to injury they then charged me the increased subscription although my renewal was less.
There argument was its a new year , mine was I wanted it resolved before I pay a new subscription . They have no values and total contempt for people who pay for services and council staff wages .
Not even worth 1 star .

Got a ticket for mount pleasant bus lane. DO NOT PAY THE FINE, if you pay, you cannot appeal. Drive from Newton road and you can't not drive on it. Its a scam generated by the council. They claim it's to make it more cycle friendly. In reality it's to compensate for the council poorly spending their funding.

Karishma was an absolute godsend. I went in with quite a complicated issue and she did not stop until she had resolved it - a good hour! She really went over and above and I would highly recommend anyone struggling with trying to get through on the phone or by email to go into the Amelia Scott centre as the staff are so incredibly helpful.
Karishma deserves a medal for her helpfulness to me but also for how kind she was to others whilst I was with her. Truly 5* customer service - thank you

Given a ticket outside my house when I have a parking permit and updated my registration online IN TIME. I change my cars fairly often due to work and update as soon as I go into a new car, but as it takes them two days to update it so I get a parking ticket and it’s my fault for them taking two days to do jt it’s online so should be instant. They are rude, they know I live in the road and still said you pay the ticket.

possibly the worst service ive ever recd...after waiting half an hour on the phone, i spoke to the most unhelpful person ever..had a bus lane penalty charge notice which i wanted to view the evidence of, as per the letter sent, she couldnt confirm why i couldnt view it, and said i should have aphoto attached to the letter sent which wasnt attached.. but she couldnt tell me why it wasnt...thank god i dont live in Tunbridge wells if thats the way they treat people..absolute disgrace

Not worth one star
the most rude , inhuman council in the country
I dont have words to say

Terrible council, managed awfully. Making an excuse to squeeze every penny out of their residents. Should be ashamed of themselves and need a whole new restructuring.

Challenged a PCN fine for confusing bus route sign as hi lighted on bbc and have completely been ignored

The worst council, you should be ashamed of yourselves. 5 year olds could do a better job.
People start leaving Tunbridge Wells because of your changes, enforcements etc
I lived in Tunbridge Wells for the past 34 years, used to love Tunbridge Wells, now I feel ashamed and hate it.

Bad Road works, bad commutation, Bad car parks dirty and cheep lifts that break down a lot.

I’ve spent the best part of a month fighting seven PCNs applied to my vehicle whilst I was away. In the process of requesting evidence which they have been unable to provide, a number of council employees have committed several serious criminal offences, including fraud by misrepresentation, tampering with evidence, fraud by failure to disclose, abuse of power and a GDPR breach. The case is ongoing despite several attempts to resolve the issue. They are adamant they have sufficient evidence but still refuse to disclose this despite a subject access request. It seems most people that live here have had enough of this council, therefore I will be calling for an independent enquiry into allegations arising from this case and an investigation into the corruption which seems to involve civil enforcement officers, managers and councillors if the matter is not resolved in full by Dec 21st. As the MP Greg Clark is failing to respond he will also be investigated for his role in allowing many of these issues under his tenure.

Area of Outstanding natural beauty and village planning envelope overturned by TWBC.

We used to live next to a field, and had a beautiful view for miles. We felt we were safe because we were on the edge of a building planning envelope, where further development was not allowed (our house has been here for over 70 years). TWBC have ignored all this, and now we have a view of a new housing estate built on green belt land. It is not a matter of secret payments, it is entirely transparent how much the various public bodies are receiving for this travesty, schools, police etc. from the planning site. Meanwhile we are having to pay to have our garden waste bins emptied which used to be free. Shame on you TWBC