Reinstatement of altered grass verges

Following a complaint about the verges on Bury Old Road in Heap, Heywood, the council has confirmed a number of verges were accidentally altered.

Grass verges which were accidentally altered by Rochdale Borough Council are set to be reinstated in the coming weeks.

Following a complaint about the verges on Bury Old Road in Heap, Heywood, the council has confirmed a number of verges were accidentally altered.

Martin Taylor, the council’s head of environmental management, said: “Hundreds of grass verges across the borough are being improved to create nature friendly spaces.

“Our ambitious project will see over 500,000 square metres of grass verges turned into nature-friendly zones, which will attract wildlife and create attractive roadside environments.

“During the course of this work, a handful of grass verges were accidently altered, and these will be reinstated within the next couple of weeks.”

Seeding of informal flowering lawns, clover verges and wildflower meadows started earlier this year, with more to follow this autumn.

The chosen sites are in semi-rural areas where the lawns are in keeping with land management styles.

The new lawns and verges will grow at lower levels, and include flowers producing a hint of colour in the summer and providing a green matt in the winter. Over time the verges will need less cutting, reducing costs through reduced traffic management needs and will deliver a higher quality roadside environment.

The European Commission states that one in ten pollinating insects is on the verge of extinction, and a third of bee and butterfly species is declining. According to the Royal Horticulture Society, one of the biggest problems for pollinators is a lack of flowering plants, especially those packed with pollen and nectar.

Pollination by bees is said to be worth over £400m per year as crops need insect pollination to produce good yields and quality fruit.