Derby City Council is strengthening grass cutting, weed control and street cleaning services across the city as part of continued investment in cleaner, safer and better maintained neighbourhoods. 

This is part of the Council’s focus on increasing investment in improving streets and public spaces, as approved in this year’s budget. 

New specialist cleaning and weed-removal teams, upgraded grounds maintenance equipment, new operational vehicles and additional seasonal services are now in place ready for the growing season, helping tackle some of the most frequently reported issues. 

Residents will see a stronger focus on maintaining grassed areas, improving the appearance of key routes into the city, tackling weeds and detritus in hard-to-reach locations and responding to seasonal challenges such as leaf fall during autumn and winter months. 

Councillor Ndukwe Onuoha, Cabinet Member for Streetpride, Parks and Leisure, said: 

Clean and well-maintained streets make a real difference to how people feel about their neighbourhoods, and this investment is helping us strengthen the services residents rely on every day. 

These improvements will help us respond more effectively to the issues residents raise with us most often, while also improving reliability and maintaining standards across the city.

Grass cutting and greener spaces 

The council’s grass cutting season will continue throughout the growing season, with teams working across parks, open spaces, highway verges and housing land on a structured rota.  

To support the programme, the council is introducing updated grounds maintenance equipment as part of its planned vehicle replacement programme. This includes two new tractors, with another two scheduled to arrive shortly, along with five new ride-on mowers to ensure teams can work efficiently throughout the season.  

Alongside regular mowing, the council also uses different cutting approaches to support biodiversity and create more nature-rich spaces. In some locations, grass is intentionally left slightly longer, including beneath trees and on selected verges where longer grass supports pollinators.  

Stronger weed control and street cleaning 

The council continues to deliver a citywide weed spraying programme, with quad bike spraying taking place twice each year across all accessible streets. 

As part of the extra investment in street cleaning services, two new targeted cleaning and weed control teams have been introduced, supported by four new full-time operative positions and three new vehicles, including a footway sweeper. A new Gateway Cleaning Team will focus on improving the appearance of 12 key gateway and arterial routes into Derby, including London Road, Uttoxeter Road, Ashbourne Road, Kedleston Road and Nottingham Road. The team will carry out weed removal, litter and debris clearance, cleaning of splitter islands, pedestrian crossings, signs, bollards and street furniture, as well as identifying defects and damage on key routes.  

In addition, a specialist weed control team will focus on residential areas where conventional spraying and sweeping operations can be more difficult due to narrow pavements, parked vehicles and other obstructions. Areas include parts of Mackworth, Alvaston, Darley and Chaddesden, where teams will combine hand spraying, manual weed removal and mechanical sweeping to tackle hard-to-reach locations. 

Further information about street care and cleaning can be found at derby.gov.uk.