What is the gardening service?
The aim of the gardening scheme is for Norwich City Council to offer assistance to tenants who are unable to maintain their gardens due to physical or mental health issues, a disability or long term illness. For some people a one-off clearance may enable them to keep the garden tidy in the future, while others may need regular maintenance visits as well.
The work will be carried out by Mow & Grow, who recruit and train volunteers to undertake community based gardening projects.
For further information download our information leaflet (1.10 Mb pdf), visit the Grow organisation website or contact Mow & Grow directly by writing to Mow & Grow House, Bowthorpe Youth and Community Centre, Bowthorpe Hall Road, Norwich, NR5 9AA, or calling 01603 740107.
How much does the service cost?
For all tenants who are eligible (see below) for the service, there is a £20 charge for the garden to be cleared – all eligible tenants, irrespective of whether they receive housing benefit, must pay this.
There is also an optional maintenance service that eligible tenants can sign-up to for approximately six additional visits, as required, over the year, once their garden has been cleared. This costs £4.30 per week and is added to the rent payments. However, tenants who are in rent arrears with the council are not automatically eligible for the additional service – each case will be reviewed separately by the arrears team. A neighbourhood housing officer (or sheltered housing scheme manager at sheltered schemes) will make contact with the tenant to arrange an assessment visit and confirm the tenant’s eligibility and the level of service they wish to sign up to. The tenant will have to provide proof of the benefits they receive at the visit.
Who can sign up to the service?
To be eligible for the service, (whether you are requesting assistance or being referred), you must:
- be a Norwich City Council tenant
- not have any relatives or friends living nearby, or household members, who are capable of maintaining the garden
- be in receipt of one of the following benefits:
- Attendance allowance
- Disability living allowance – all types
- Severe disablement allowance
- Industrial injuries benefit
- War disablement pension
- Long-term incapacity benefit.
If you do not receive one of the above benefits but have health problems or a disability which makes it difficult to maintain your garden, you may still be considered for the scheme.
If you meets the above criteria and would like to sign up to the maintenance service but are in rent arrears, your case will be reviewed by the arrears team. This does not affect the one-off clearance service (£20), which is available to eligible tenants irrespective of arrears.
Who else can offer assistance if the resident does not meet the eligibility criteria?
Norfolk Trusted Trader is an initiative from Norfolk County Council Trading Standards and builds on the already well-established Norfolk Home Call service. Norfolk Trusted Trader continues the theme of a local business partnership scheme aimed at increasing consumer confidence, promoting good practice within local business and helping protect citizens from doorstep crime.
The Norfolk Trusted Trader Scheme allows reputable traders to sign up and be featured in a directory that will be free to Norfolk residents. More than 400 local traders and businesses feature in the directory. All of the traders in the directory have gone through a process of accreditation. There is also a Norfolk Trusted Trader website, showing details of all current traders.
If you would like further information on the Norfolk Trusted Trader scheme, then please contact us at:
Norfolk Trusted Trader
Norfolk County Council
Trading Standards Service
County Hall
Martineau Lane
Norwich, NR1 2UD
t: 0344 800 8013
e: trustedtrader@norfolk.gov.uk
website: www.norfolk.gov.uk/trustedtrader
Alternatively, Norfolk Probation Service offer a free gardening service to people who have no other means of carrying out the work themselves, although applications are only accepted in writing and should be sent to:
Norfolk Probation Service
Community Payback
Centenary House
19 Palace Street
Norwich
NR3 1RT
t: 01603 724000
Residents who wish to apply for this service must send in the following information in writing:
- Reasons for being unable to maintain the garden, eg health or financial difficulties
- Whether there is anyone locally who may be able to help
- The work required in the garden.
Who can I contact for more information about the referral process?
If you require any further information about the scheme or to pass on a referral for an assessment visit, please call the customer contact team:
t: 0344 980 3333
e: info@norwich.gov.uk