“Where are my binmen? Why hasn’t mine been emptied? Why is there mess left in my street” These are some of the most common complaints from residents about their waste collection service.

Reporter Keely Greenwood spent a morning out with the crews from Gravesham Borough Council to get some answers.

Starting work at 6.30am and facing harsh weather conditions, from torrential rain and snow to heatwaves, binmen (or refuse and recycling collectors to use their correct title) don’t have the easiest job and they certainly don’t get a lot of praise for it either.

Instead, residents tend to demand a five-star service, as after all “what are we paying our council tax for?”

They get stick if they miss a bin, stick if they turn up late for a road and stick if they leave a mess on the road.

But waste projects and compliance officer at Gravesham Borough Council Joel Simons says they are doing their best.

“People expect a lot,” he said. “They are passionate about their services. They pay their council tax and they want the service to be the best.”

But Joel said their council tax only actually amounts to a £200 contribution towards the council and that money has to cover everything from maintaining its parks and cemeteries to clearing flytipping and dealing with abandoned cars.

Over the course of a busy shift, a bin crew, consisting of three refuse and recycling collectors and a driver, will empty up to 2,000 bins. This amounts to 35,000 tons of rubbish a year.

But they still get in trouble from residents, complaining they are late or have “missed a bin”.

Joel explained the reasons a bin may be missed include the fact they may not have been put out in time.

The refuse and recycling collectors start their shift at 7am and tend to follow the same route. However, if there is an accident or roadworks they may be forced to adapt the road order, sometimes fitting in certain roads before they are due to close for repairs.

“That’s why we always tell people to have their bins out by 7am,” Joel said. “As sometimes they may need to change the route and if you haven’t put your bin out yet, as the truck doesn’t normally come that early, you might be missed.

“A whole road of up to 30 houses could be missed due to inconsiderate parking, which then has a knock-on effect as the trunk is forced to return at a later date when it should be serving another area.”

Joel said they have started to put a card on the windscreen of cars parked inconsiderately to educate people.

Another complaint is the mess they might sometimes leave on the road.

“They have brooms on board and try to clear it up at the time but they are only human,” Joel said. “They might not see it or, if it’s too big and they don’t have time to stay and clear it all up, they will call the office and we will send road sweepers to clean it up.”

There is a lot of mechanics involved in a bin lorry with a lot of potential for breakdowns, which Joel explains is another reason why a crew might be delayed on their round.

“The hydraulic hose can pop, various mechanics can break down,” Joel said.

One truck even had to be rescued recently when it pulled over to the side of the road to let a car come past in the opposite direction and part of the truck started to slide into a sinkhole which suddenly appeared after all the recent rain.

“A recovery vehicle had to go out and rescue it,” Joel said. “Which meant that route was delayed and had to be done at another time, which then set back other routes too.”

A vehicle might end up being sent back to the council’s workshop for repairs which could delay their round by a few hours.

One of the biggest issues refuse and recycling collectors face is being unable to empty recycling bins because they are contaminated, something Joel is working hard to address.

“We have rejected 10,000 bins and sent out 10,000 letters since April.”

He explained there is 73 tons of contaminated recycling every year, which can include everything from nappies and sanitary products to food and clothes.

Joel says educating people on recycling is the way forward to avoid contamination and is important in saving money.

“It costs £100 less to dispose of recycled waste compared to refuse. If people are contaminating their recycling all that waste has to be disposed of with the refuse, which could have been done cheaper if it was recycled properly.

“That is costing Kent County Council, which is ultimately the taxpayers’ money.”

And Joel explained that things have come a long way from 20 years ago when the majority of refuse would go to landfill, with only 1.9 per cent going to landfill now and 45 per cent going to recycling, with the rest being burned to create energy.

And the education is obviously working, as Joel says Gravesham is one of only five boroughs in the country which has seen its recycling per household increase in the last five years.

He was also keen to stress the trucks will also recycle batteries if left out in a separate clear bag on top of your bin.

While the public might like to have a moan about their refuse and recycling collectors, Christmas is often a time when they do see a reward for their efforts with many households often leaving out a festive tip.

And Joel said it is definitely well-deserved as they carry out their work whatever the weather.

“When it’s icy the trucks will go down all the roads they can. We leave it to the driver’s discretion. They are professionals.

‘A whole road of up to 30 houses could be missed due to inconsiderate parking’

“And if the truck can’t get down a road that has not been gritted the binmen will try to walk down it, although we have to be careful we don’t have anyone slipping over and injuring themselves.”

Whilst in a heatwave the council makes sure its workers are looked after.

“We come round with a palette of water bottles and drop them off for the crews,” Joel said.

And they have a “group finish” system so if one crew completes their round they go and help another truck to finish.

Cllr Emma Morley, Gravesham Borough Council’s Cabinet Member for Operational Services, said: “Occasionally, we do get complaints about missed or late collections, but there are usually good reasons for those that are beyond the control of the crews. In fact, our missed bin rates are very low, and where we receive reports, we do make every effort to return as soon as possible and empty those.

“And we also get many, many compliments about the work of our crews and examples of them going above and beyond what is normally expected of them to help our residents.

“I am proud of the dedication and pride shown by our crews in carrying out what is a physically demanding and essential service that not too many people would volunteer to do for themselves.”