AS A former Wallasey resident who moved away about four years ago, today I had occasion to revisit the town. I was disgusted by what I found.

We drove into the municipal car park on Seaview Road, and were confronted by what I can only describe as a forest of weeds sprouting from every crack and crevice of the kerbs and pavements. Some of those weeds were two or three feet high, so clearly planned maintenance was abandoned some time ago. It dismays me to see the state of my home town being exemplified, especially to visitors, by the weed choked kerbs in Liscard. Not just in the car park itself, but we observed the same sorry spectacle on our entire route out of the town to the M53.

Only someone without a pulse could fail to be aware of the effect of austerity cuts on local authority budgets.

However, is it really beyond the wit of Wirral Council to ask one of their staff to recruit a team of volunteers from amongst the many citizens of the town who must surely be just as concerned as me about the scruffiness of the kerbs and pavements, and who could spare an hour per week?

Could the local authority not supply a bunch of such volunteers with basic tools (perhaps donated by a local store which has much to lose from the deterioration of Liscard) and task them with tidying up a blight of which the council seems to have washed its hands?

The image of Wallasey in the eyes of those who visit for the first time is bound to be damaged by decrepitude and dereliction which is obviously in danger of becoming the norm. Its much worse for those who see it day in, day out.

Wirral Council: if you can’t afford to tackle this problem, or can’t be bothered, at least have a go at persuading someone who cares to do it for you.

David Elsam,

Flintshire.