Disabled Enfield Wash resident slams council for removing communal bins

Placida Ojinnaka has accused Enfield Council of failing in its duty under the Equality Act, reports Richard Cubitt

A disabled resident of Enfield Wash claims she’s been “failed” by the council after the communal bins for her block were taken away.

Placida Ojinnaka lives in a council home purpose-built for disabled residents, alongside other similar properties, but earlier this year the communal bins which she shared with four other tenants were removed.

She said she had not been notified that the bins would be removed and didn’t understand why they were taken away.

The council has since claimed that the bins were removed because of “misuse”.

In March, after two weeks of having no bins, Placida called the council’s waste management service, which sent a housing officer to see her. She said he advised her that she could use wheelie bins on the opposite side of Beaconsfield Road.

But Placida told the Dispatch: “How am I going to negotiate crossing the road [while carrying rubbish], steering my powered wheelchair to that particular area?”

The housing officer then told her that she would be given a wheelie bin, but Placida told him she “can’t push a wheelie bin”.

The officer then told her that she should leave her gate open for the bin men to collect the bin from within her property.

She said: “I might be up at five o’clock but there is no way I’m going to leave my gate, which is practically my front door, open for someone to come in.”

A wheelie bin was eventually delivered to Placida’s property last week, but she was not informed that it would be coming in advance. She said she had reached out to the council to try and arrange for her bins to be collected.

“I don’t feel like I’ve been listened to and I feel very annoyed,” she said. “They have failed in their public equality duty.”

Under the 2010 Equality Act, councils like Enfield are required to provide “reasonable adjustment” in the provision of services for disabled people.

Placida said: “I do feel Enfield need to wake up to the injustice that is being done to disabled people as a whole. There isn’t anybody being proactive about things, and this cannot go on because people will end up being punitively affected.”

A council spokesperson said: “In this case, communal bins were removed following persistent misuse, including fly-tipping, which created risks relating to vermin and fire safety. An interim arrangement was introduced, with communal bins located nearby on the Kettering Road Estate.

“When council tenants are unable to access waste facilities safely or independently, the caretaking team can provide additional support, including arrangements for rubbish bags to be collected from outside a resident’s home on collection days. This offer was made to the resident at Sparkbrook Way. Earlier this month, a wheeled bin was provided and officers visited to conduct a welfare check.

“We recognise that changes to waste arrangements can have an impact on residents, particularly those with mobility or health needs. We will work with those residents with additional needs to agree practical and safe solutions.”

However, Placida disputed that a welfare check had been performed this month, and that suitable arrangements were made for her.

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