What we do - Vegetation

Urban grass cutting

Each October, we ask all Parish and Town Councils with urban grass to choose one of three options for the next year.

  • Option 1 - Standard: Two cuts over the course of a year to be carried out by East Sussex County Council (ESCC) at no cost to the Parish/Town Council. Urban grass will be managed for safety purposes only.
  • Option 2 – Extra cuts: Parish/Town Councils may fund an additional four cuts to be carried out by ESCC, totalling six cuts (two standard and four extra) over the course of the year. The extra 4 cuts would be funded by the Parish/Town Council.
  • Option 3 – Self delivery: Parish/Town Councils take on responsibility to deliver all urban grass cutting in their area. This must include a minimum of two cuts over the course of the year. ESCC will not carry out any urban grass cutting in the area. ESCC contribute the cost of 2 cuts to the Parish/Town Council.

    Please see below the map which shows the Urban grass cutting zones within East Sussex.
Urban Grass Cutting 2025

 

Urban grass cutting schedule

How we maintain urban verges

Our grass cutting policies prioritise safety and visibility for road users. Therefore, we cannot cut grass verges for just visual reasons - we can only make the decision to cut a grass verge based on road safety.

Urban verges will be cut twice per year unless:

  • A safety issue has been highlighted at a junction or sight line

  • The Parish or Town Council have paid for 4 additional cuts

  • The Parish or Town Council is undertaking their urban grass cutting service in-house; therefore, we will not carry out any cuts. 

  • The verge is registered as a wildlife verge

  • There are no urban verges, verges in this area would be maintained as rural.

You can find out who is responsible for grass cutting in your area on our grass cutting map above.

Report a problem

If you think the problem is an emergency please call us on 0345 60 80 193. If it is not an emergency you can report it easily online here.

Report a problem online