76872-07IT'S not just residents who are having trouble getting to grips with the new refuse collection dates refuse collectors are also unsure.

Many households do not know when they should put rubbish bags and recycling boxes out since the collection dates changed at the beginning of the week.

And bin men are turning up on the wrong day, say residents.

On Monday Swindon Council changed the collection days. The new days for each area in the town were in a booklet distributed to homes.

Glynis Churchward, of Stanier Street, was furious when she saw a refuse lorry coming towards her house on Wednesday morning.

According to the booklet it should not have been collecting until Thursday.

She said: "There are a lot of different cultures in this street and the booklet is written in English. People who can't speak English put their rubbish out on Wednesday morning.

"So I had to race round the back of my house and grab my bags to get them out."

"If the council can't stick to the rules, how can anyone else? It's a shambles, they don't know what they're doing."

Gipsy Lane and Elgin Drive were not included in the council's information booklet at all.

Sam Zebedee, 25, of Elgin Drive, put her bags out on Monday totally unaware the timetable had changed.

The accountant said: "It's awful. Some of the bags are beginning to split and cats are getting into them."

Yesterday a note from the council was pushed through her door apologising for not including the streets and claiming the rubbish would be collected today.

Pat Richardson, 68, of Gipsy Lane, thinks residents in the area are forgotten about. She only knew the dates had changed when she saw the report in the Adver.

Stephen Gregory, of Marston Avenue, said: "I stopped the bin men in Penhill Drive and asked them what day they would be coming to Marston Avenue.

"They said Monday, but the book says Tuesday. I don't know what's going on. The bin men and council don't know what's going on.

"I object to the fact they whack up our community charge and we don't get anything back from them."

Sarah Deacon, Swindon Council spokeswoman, said: "The bin men are collecting on the days specified as in the booklets sent out to residents.

"We are looking into the areas that have experienced problems and hope to have them rectified very soon."

Lyndsay Scanlan