Plans to force residents to place their bins near the pavement or their rubbish will not be collected have come under fire.

Brent Council have placed red stickers on bins across the borough warning homeowners of the new rule which comes into force next month.

However, furious residents claim the policy does not consider the vulnerable including the visually impaired and the elderly who may not have the strength to transport their bins to the edge of their driveways.

Al Forsyth, head of the Brondesbury Residents and Tenants Association, also claims the new policy is confusing..

He said: “How much closer does it [the bin] have to be? Some are already placed next to resident’s front gates.

“I hope they don’t expect us to put the bins onto the pavement itself. Young children, people with push chairs and those with walking difficulties will be most affected by the obstruction.”

Cllr Carol Shaw, conservative councillor for Brondesbury, said: “Brondesbury Park residents are very unhappy about this and so am I.

“The red sticker put on everyone’s bins is a total waste of money which could have been used in other ways.”

Cllr Roxanne Mashari, Brent Council’s lead member for environment and neighbourhoods, recently joined crews on a bin round to experience first hand how much time it takes to retrieve bins.

She told the Times residents with mobility and disability issues will not be penalised by the new policy which is being introduced to improve efficiency and reduce costs.

She added: “Next year government cuts to Brent will amount to more than the entire budget for the environment and neighbourhoods department.

“In this context we are asking residents to leave their bins out at the edge of their properties on collection days to speed up collections which will save the council money.”

Resident with disability and mobility issues will have access to assisted collections.

To register call 020 8937 5050.