Residents want learners to clean up their act
The residents are demanding that the school opens the other gate on Great North Road.
Residents who reside around Wordsworth High School have raised concerns about littering, which is affecting their properties adjacent to the school’s main gate in Wordsworth Road.
One of the residents, Wayne Joyce, has started a petition to have the school utilise another gate on Great North Road as the main entrance.
Joyce said the littering has been an ongoing issue and residents are fed-up.
“We are greeted by trash in our yards on a daily basis. The learners throw it everywhere, including on our lawns. We have even found alcohol bottles and packets of drugs.”
Other concerns residents raised include loud music from taxis that transport the learners.
“The noise is unbearable. My windows have started falling out due to the extreme pressure of the noise from taxis. The situation not only influences our property values but rental property as well,” said Joyce.
He said when the school hosted a sports tournament he saw learners drinking alcohol from morning until the afternoon, and some even urinated on his lawn.
Joyce said he has engaged with the school numerous times about his concerns but nothing has been done.
“I have spoken to the previous principals about this but nothing has been done to resolve the matter. When I moved into the area in April 2019, the situation was already bad but now it is worse,” he said.
On May 6, when the City Times spoke to Joyce, he said he went to the school personally to complain about the litter outside his house. A teacher then accompanied the learners to pick up the litter.
Another resident who lives across the road from the school said even when its refuse collection day and the bins are out, the learners don’t bother throwing the rubbish in a bin.
The resident added that besides the loud music and fights they are subjected to, the learners’ transport parks right in front of their gates, preventing them from driving out.
The City Times approached the school for comment but was referred to the Department of Education, which is yet to respond to our questions.
Also Read: GDE to expand Wordsworth High
Also Read: Flying the flag for Wordsworth High School
