Grass cutting

The majority of grass verges adjacent to rural roads are within the public highway and therefore come under the responsibility of Bedfordshire Highways.

There are three main organisations that can be responsible for grass in the urban areas of towns and villages. Bedfordshire as the highway authority is generally responsible for grass adjacent to the road. District Councils and Town or Parish Councils can be responsible for the larger amenity areas, and Housing Associations can be responsible for grass around social housing complexes.

If you want to know who is responsible for what grass then please contact us on the contact details below.

In fulfilling its responsibilities as Highway Authority, Bedfordshire Highways is required to keep verges safe and unobstructed and this is particularly important at road junctions where clear visibility for motorists and pedestrians is necessary.

We are not required to cut grass for aesthetic appearances. For this reason we do allow Town and Parish Councils to cut highway grass on our behalf within their urban areas and we pay them what we would spend doing it ourselves.

The Town or Parish Council can then put their own funding into more frequent cutting than we undertake. If you would like more information on this arrangement please contact us on the contact details as below.

In rural areas, a number of grass verges have been designated as roadside nature reserves as they contain rare or endangered species of flora/fauna. Here the grass cutting regime is tailored to suit. If you would like to know where roadside nature reserves are located in Bedfordshire then please contact us on the contact details below.

What grass won't the Council cut?

We do not cut the grass that is:

• privately owned
• on properties/estates owned by bodies other than the Council

What other grass will the Council Cut?

We also cut the grass on all council owned land, e.g. schools that are owned by the County Council
To report problems with grass in schools please use the contact details below and your report will be passed to our Property Management consultant.

For further information please contact

Highways Helpdesk,
Bedfordshire County Council,
6th Floor,
County Hall,
BEDFORD,
MK42 9AP
Tel: (01234) 228661
Email: highways@bedscc.gov.uk |