"Gloucester County Council's Temporary Staff Dis-service"

Gloucester County Council's temporary staff service is absolutely appalling and not even a service. On their website they claim to have a "dedicated team" - which is a false statement, they don't care about finding people work, they don't respond to communication, they lie about getting back to you, because they won't. It should be disbanded and replaced by a real professional recruitment agency outside source who really are dedicated to finding people work. So don't bother signing up with them if you are looking for work, you will find frosty, disinterested staff.

"Chocolate teapot"

Chocolate teapot, ashtray on a motorcycle... what am I talking about? - potholes..... - nuff said!

"Where do I start."

Where do I start.
Gloucester Council allow vulnerable people to remain homeless. They also allow families to be homeless, despite having empty properties.
Their email address is heretohelp, but it ought to be, couldn'tcareless.
They take no notice of medical evidence, mental health issues, or even solicitors.
They break their own rules and regulations and have no regard for anyone bar themselves.
I could go on and on, but you get the idea.
If you need help of any description, don't expect any here.

"From my contact with Gloucestershire…"

From my contact with Gloucestershire County Council (I'd avoid it if I could) only ever meets with difficulties. This is how the system works. If you raise an issue detrimental to their interests in any way they politely fob you off. If that doesn't work and you continue to ask questions they dont want you to know they will continually obstruct, mislead, deceive, hinder and do all they can to grind you down until they eventually refuse to discuss the issue further having not discussed it in the first place. You find it staffed with people whose careers have evolved in the public sector where impertinence and incompetence are excepted and they have no competition for their services so have no standards of customer services. Its managers and leaders suffer huge delusions of grandeur and consider themselves far more important than they actual are, they think the community serve them and not the other way around. They answer to no one and have no fear of any regulatory authority as they can twist them around their finger and get away with anything. If Gloucestershire County Council were in the private sector they wouldn't last three months.

"Total Disinterest re: Parking Department information for Disability Parking"

This review is in regard to the Parking Department at Gloucestershire County Council. I was staying overnight in the centre of Cheltenham (Henrietta Street) on a busy Saturday evening with my profoundly disabled daughter and I needed some information regarding disabled parking, as I was completely unfamiliar with the area. The staff at the hotel we were staying at were exceptionally helpful, as were Cheltenham BC, but both parties stated it would be beneficial to contact Gloucestershire County Council for accurate information re blue badge parking, suitable parking bays, car park rules etc.
Initially I spent all day telephoning the Parking Department at Gloucester C.C. without response. I was made to listen to an extremely lengthy recorded message each time I telephoned, without any indication whatsoever that anyone would eventually answer the phone, if I continued to wait. At the end of the day I complained via the main switchboard/reception of Gloucestershire CC. A very annoyed receptionist stated that if I had listened to the recorded message in its entirety, twice through, then someone would have eventually answered the phone. The onus was upon me. There was no indication, or message to state that anyone would answer the phone at some point, even if I had listened to the recording TWICE through (months later, I checked and nothing had changed). At the end of the day, the receptionist managed to gain a response from the Parking Department. I was delighted!! When I asked the employee in the parking department to help with information regarding suitable blue badge parking for my daughter, as we were staying over in Cheltenham at a very busy time on a Saturday evening, her response was 'READ THE SIGNS, EVERYWHERE WILL BE SIGNPOSTED' This was the only information given, despite the fact that our hotel and Cheltenham BC had warned me to be very careful as many people were being fined for entering the city centre when driving and it was very confusing for some and in particular for anyone, who did not know the area. I again requested, if the lady I spoke to in the Parking Dept. could offer any further information, but she insisted that' I just look for signs' and she enquired as to whether I had a booklet with my daughter's blue badge, which I had, and she suggested that I read it. The employee was not confrontational, but totally, totally, unhelpful I am unsure as to whether this lady was simply inefficient and did not have any knowledge, as to disabled parking facilities, or whether she was completely uncaring and unhelpful. On a positive note, it is very unusual and disappointing to find such a disinterested individual, especially when a profoundly disabled young person is involved. As far as I can remember, I have never made a similar complaint in my life, but in this instance I did make a complaint to Gloucester County Council. Then it became more shocking. It 'appeared' that the person allocated to investigate my complaint, was the lady that I had spoken to on the telephone in the Parking Department, who refused to give any information re disabled parking. When I enquired via e-mail as to whether she was the person investigating and also the person involved, there was no response. Obviously, she would feel that her own judgment skills were reliable and the information, (or more importantly, the lack of it), she had offered was adequate. Do I really need to waste all day trying to contact the Parking Department at Gloucestershire County Council by telephone, to eventually be told 'Look for signs' and read the booklet that accompanies the blue badge?. It was even more shocking to realise that when we arrived at our hotel in Henrietta Street Cheltenham, there was a large Council Car Park virtually next door. Why did Gloucester CC keep this information from me? I had advised them of where we were staying. On checking the Car Park, it did provide disabled parking bays and from memory we did not have to pay until 12 p.m. on Sunday, which was very helpful to us. Thankfully this has been a unique experience.