Find out when the council will be cutting the grass in your Harborough neighbourhood

The county council is launching its annual programme of grass cutting across Harborough and throughout Leicestershire this month.

Teams are mowing the equivalent of 28 football pitches a day in towns and villages - cutting an astonishing three million square metres of grass.

You can check out when grass in your neighbourhood will be cut on the county council’s map: www.leicestershire.gov.uk/popular-now/grass-cuttingThe routine maintenance is primarily focused for now on urban routes - which are cut six times throughout the season.

These routes are mainly on roads with a speed limit of 30mph or less.

The work is sometimes done on the county council's behalf by the local district or parish council.

Ann Carruthers, the county council’s director of environment and transport said: “We cut grass in towns and villages for safety reasons, not just to enhance the look of communities.

“Looking after verges, central reservations and islands ensures that visibility is not restricted for road users at junctions and that pavement widths are not reduced.”

She added: “I would encourage people to have a look at the interactive map to find out when the teams are in their area."

The council will also be starting its rural programme.

The ambitious initiative focuses on cutting back of the verges on corners, bends, and junctions on roads between villages, again to help with visibility and safety.

Ann added: “We’ve changed the way which we manage our rural verges after residents said that they would prefer less grass to be cut and wildflowers allowed to thrive.

“Our teams are working hard to balance our environmental commitments while keeping road users as safe as we can.

"There will always be a need to cut some grass verges for visibility,” she said.

“But last year marked the largest reduction in the number of rural roadsides being cut.”

The county council will also be leaving 55 wildflower verges across Leicestershire uncut as parish councils prepare them to bloom this summer.