Rotting rubbish at Erskine House leaves resident 'hopeless'

Lina Ames has lived in Erksine House, Oxhey Drive, with her husband Lee for three years, but said she would “gladly pack up everything and leave” over the Thrive Homes property’s storage problems.

The large communal bins often go unemptied for weeks at a time, according to the 46-year-old event coordinator, as cars parked in front of the yard mean refuse lorries cannot reach them.

“Now rubbish hasn’t been collected for the third week and in this heat, I can’t even come out into the garden because it stinks of rotting rubbish,” Lina said. “There are flies and rats everywhere, I don’t know how to live here.”

Lina Ames lives in Erskine House, which is run by Thrive Homes. (Image: Lina Ames)

A spokesperson for Thrive Homes said it was aware of the issues at Erskine House and was working to improve access for refuse lorries. However, when the same issue was raised 10 months ago it said it "will be reviewing the process and make improvements if required".

The “tipping point” for the 46-year-old was in May the day before her wedding, when visitors were coming and the bins had been left for over a month. 

“Foxes and cats had ripped the bins open because people started putting them on the floor so the entire estate was filled with rubbish flying all over,” she explained.

The bin storage often goes unemptied for weeks at a time. (Image: Lina Ames) “I remember I was standing there the night before my wedding and crying. I had people coming from abroad to attend and it was so embarrassing.”

Lina added: “I don’t know how long we can last like this because our patience is really thin. I feel so hopeless.”

Residents say cars parked in front of the rubbish storage mean bin lorries are not able to empty them. (Image: Lina Ames) The Thrive Homes property’s rubbish storage has been plagued by issues for years, as new recycling bins were added in November 2021 to try to tackle overflowing rubbish.

• Residents being 'driven mad' by overflowing bins
• New bins introduced in hope to tackle 'hazardous' overflowing bins site

Last September, Thrive said it was reviewing its process for dealing with contaminated bins after councillor Steve Cox warned “residents are outraged and the rubbish is driving them mad”.

Lina said she has to live next to the smell of rotting rubbish when the bins go unemptied. (Image: Lina Ames) A spokesperson for Thrive Homes said now it was aware of the continual issues at Erskine House, adding: “Working alongside Three Rivers District Council, we are in the process of improving access for waste removal and will be communicating directly with our customers about this. 

“In the meantime, weekly monitoring of the area is taking place, and we are arranging clearances where required.” 

A Three Rivers District Council spokesperson said it was also aware of the problem and would “endeavour” to empty the bins when access allowed. 

They added: “Thrive has responsibility for the management of the flats and we continue to work with them to find solutions.”