A RESIDENT with mobility issues who applied for assisted recycling collections said her rubbish has been piling up outside her flat for months.

Claire Harrison, of Dale Court, Dovercourt, lives in a first-floor flat.

But the 46-year-old has a form of dementia and mobility issues which make getting up and down the stairs to her flat difficult.

She’s said she has been visited by Veolia and Tendring Council who agreed she could have assisted rubbish collections - but claims nobody has collected her recycling since June.

Claire, who is a retired nurse, said: “I have a form of dementia and live up a flight of stairs, but the council won’t come up to collect my recycling.

“It takes me ages to get down the stairs, so I applied for assisted collections.

“The paper bin is nearly full, so is the plastic bin and I have lots of cardboard boxes around the place too.”

She said her neighbours have helped, and her local pharmacy and supermarket both deliver her items up the stairs to her front door.

“The council won’t go up the stairs to collect the rubbish,” she added.

“But they are happy for me to go down the stairs and potentially break my neck.

“It’s getting absolutely ridiculous.”

Bill Davidson, Tendring councillor for Dovercourt Vines and Parkeston, has been trying to help Claire.

He said: “I have been working on the situation for weeks.

“She’s a disabled woman who had applied for assisted collections and nothing has been done and she is still in the same position.

“I wonder how many more people are in her position.”

A Veolia spokesman said: “We take assisted collections very seriously and have organised a supervisor to visit Claire Harrison to check that everything is in order and rebriefed our crews to ensure the service runs smoothly.

“We have only received two reports of missed collections at this address and these have been immediately acted upon.”

A Tendring Council spokesman said: “With the introduction of our new waste service came new routes, and in many cases crews taking on new areas, and it will take some time for them to learn all the details of the routes such as which properties have assisted collections.

“Assisted collections are available to the elderly, disabled or anyone who has difficulty putting waste and recycling to their boundary.

Under this service, crews collect and return wheelie bins and recycling boxes to a point nearer to the property.

Officers have advised, for the health and safety of crews and residents, they do not allow crews to enter anyone’s property.

A spokesman said: “We will investigate this case to make sure this resident has her recycling collected as it should be.”