A woman has been told to cut her grass – by officials working for a council which doesn’t cut theirs.

As Kirklees Council cuts back on its own grass cutting, Janne Shread has been ordered to tackle her overgrown front garden – or else!

Just a week after Kirklees councillors backed plans to reduce – or stop – mowing in parks and public areas, Janne received a letter telling her to get strimming.

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As controversy rages over unkempt parks and roadside verges, Janne and partner Paul Smith, who live in a privately-owned house on the council’s London Park Estate in Mirfield, were stunned to receive a warning letter.

It said owner-occupiers as well as tenants had a duty to keep their gardens neat and tidy and added: “Maintaining your gardens helps not only to improve the appearance of your home but also of the estate in general.

“If you fail to maintain your garden further action could be taken against you.”

A warning letter from Kirklees Neighbourhood Housing sent to Janne Shread, of Mirfield, over the length of the grass in her front garden.

Administrator Janne, 43, was outraged when the letter dropped through the door and said: “I couldn’t believe the bare-faced cheek of it.

“Kirklees should get its own house in order before telling me off about my grass. What about theirs?”

The letter came from the council’s housing management company Kirklees Neighbourhood Housing (KNH) after an estate inspection. Janne believes neighbours have had letters too.

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The letter warns tenants they are in breach of their tenancy agreement if they have overgrown gardens but says private owners also have a clause in their deeds which requires their garden to be “cultivated and free from weeds.”

Engineer Paul, 45, has owned the house for about 25 years and in recent months the couple have set about improving it, as and when money allowed. They have stripped out overgrown Leylandii trees at the back and installed new fencing.

The couple have two large bags of building materials in their driveway as the front of the house is being block paved.

Jane admitted the grass – almost waist high in parts – was overgrown but said work had taken longer than planned.

The turf at the front had been turned by their builder in December in preparation for it to be cleared and pebbled over.

However, work had been delayed and the grass had grown and gone to seed. The ground was too uneven to mow and the grass was now too much for a strimmer.

Janne said builders were due to bring in a digger to remove the grass and it would be covered over.

“Anyone can see we are having improvements done but we are having to do it bit by bit as we can afford it,” she said.

“Just like the council has to work to a budget so do we except ours is slightly smaller! People in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones. That’s the galling part.”

Long grass on central reservation of A644, Huddersfield Road, Dewsbury.

A KNH spokesman said: “KNH carry out regular estate inspections to identify any issues that need attention.

“They are also an opportunity to remind residents that they need to keep their gardens tidy. This is a condition of tenancy but is also part of the covenant that homeowners sign up to when they buy a home on a council estate.”