John Thomson, deputy leader of Wiltshire Council, said he does not want to see a repeat of the troubles that blighted the start of its £25m-a-year highways contract.

Since Balfour Beatty Living Places began its five-year deal with Wiltshire Council on June 1, residents across the region have raised several complaints – most notably that grass has been left to become overgrown.

Coun Thomson, cabinet member responsible for highways and streetscene, said the service was now up to speed and he had not received any further complaints in the last week.

He said: “I wasn’t necessarily disappointed by the problems but I’m satisfied they are now running fine. What concerns me is that we don’t have a repeat of this in the future. For example, when the snow starts falling we went gritting to be of the standard it should be.”

He said he was keen to offer town and parish councils more freedom in what sections of grass get cut.