A COUNCIL apologised to a resident who made several pleas for help and received no information on the actions taken.

Buckley councillor Mike Peers told town council colleagues of his serious concerns over Flintshire Council's response times.

He explained that at the end of June he had been contacted by a resident who had submitted several requests for help via the Flintshire Council app and had no reply other than an acknowledgement of receipt.

Cllr Peers explained: "I looked into this further and this was very serious where threats had been made to the person's wellbeing and property.

"I went to see the gentleman concerned and he had serious concerns.

"There were multiple reports pleading for help that went unaddressed."

He said after investigating the matter with Flintshire Council a site visit was arranged with North Wales Police within a week.

Gareth Owens, chief officer for governance at Flintshire Council, said: “Cllr. Peers has had discussions with council officers concerning the specific case he referred to at the meeting.

"The messages were received and acted upon, however the resident was not informed of the actions taken following receipt of those messages.

"An apology has been sent to the resident for this oversight together with a full explanation of the actions taken.”

The meeting of Buckley Town Council last week also heard concerns over the general response times of Flintshire Council officers to everyday queries by councillors and members of the public.

Cllr Peers added: "It seems to be a trend - once they have acknowledged it I think they see that as a response and it gets kicked into the long grass.

"What they have to bear in mind is that when issues come to us in this chamber, people expect us to react in a timely manner.

"When the county council doesn't seem to run at the same rate it can get very frustrating when we have to go back to those residents."

Cllr Richard Jones said: "It is pretty disrespectful and if we behaved like that we would never have another term of office.

"I don't want to personalise it but there are certain people or departments that don't respond and I don't think it is just Buckley - I think its the whole county."

Councillors agreed to ask the Martin Wright, clerk to the town council, to request information about how the timeframe for responding to enquiries is monitored and whether the information gathered could be shared with the town council.

Regarding the concerns over general response times, Gareth Owens added: "We have noted the concerns expressed at the meeting and will work together with Buckley Town Council to address any issues it has regarding communications with Flintshire Council officers."