Gardeners have urged their council to consider resuming green waste collections or put new measures in place to deal with any rubbish build-up.

Karen McNamara, on behalf of the residents of Welldon Crescent and Wellesley Road, Harrow, wrote an open letter to Harrow Council outlining their concerns regarding waste collection services during the lockdown period.

She noted the inevitable impact of coronavirus on council services, but suggested waste collection is ever more important at a time when people are being asked to stay at home.

“This is the time of year we cut back our plants, mow the lawns and clear out damaged and broken items – this is when we need regular collections,” she said.

“Restart the brown bin collection as soon as possible. With so many people forced to stay at home, spring cleaning and garden maintenance are some of the ways we are expending energy and getting exercise.

“We don’t like having to keep our rubbish in our front or back gardens.

“The lovely weather we’ve been experiencing gives us cause to be in the garden. For many of us, it’s the only ‘outside’ we see during lockdown.

“It’s where our children play, burning off their energy. It needs to be safe – if we have to keep our rubbish there, it isn’t truly safe.”

Ms McNamara added the issue has been compounded by the council’s decision to close the recycling centre in Forward Drive following government advice.

She suggested opening the tip gradually – for a few days a week, or at certain times of day, or staggering it for different post codes.

She said the closure, combined with reduced collection services, could lead to an increase in fly-tipping, which, she noted, will have a worse impact on council services and finances going forward.

Harrow Council explained that the coronavirus outbreak meant it had to focus on key services to best support the borough during the crisis.

At the time of the suspension of brown bin collections, a spokesperson for the council said: “Due to the impact of covid-19, we’ve taken a difficult decision to postpone the start of your garden waste service.

“Resources are being prioritised so that food waste, general and recycling bins are collected.”

The council added that refunds and extra collections would be arranged once the service is back up and running.