More than 200 needles were collected just yards from people’s homes on a quiet street in Whitchurch, the Chronicle can reveal.
The incident happened in February on Yardington but only came to light after the Chronicle submitted a Freedom of Information request to North Shropshire District Council. This also led to the discovery of two suspected needle stick injuries to members of NSDC staff.
The first injury occurred in January last year when a worker felt something prick him through carpet during a house clearance.
The second happened in February this year when an employee was emptying a bin and felt something prick him through the rubbish.
In both cases no clear evidence of what had caused the injuries could be found, but the workers were referred to their doctors and received a course of treatment as a precaution against hepatitis.
The FOI requests followed a number of incidents in April when civic leaders warned that people were being put at risk by needles being dumped in the town centre.
Dozens of used needles were discovered in bins and on the ground close to the civic centre and in the town’s Diana Gardens.
Peter Martin, Whitchurch Town Council clerk, said at the time: “We are getting quite a spate of needles here in Whitchurch, and I’m concerned in case someone gets stuck on them.”
Mrs Jean Sanders, NSDC’s chief solicitor who handles FOI requests, said she could not answer another request by the Chronicle to find out how many needles are collected and from where.
She also declined to provide information on the cost involved in needle collection stating the information was not recorded separately either. She added, although she knew of two suspected needle injuries to council employees, NSDC holds no records for injuries to the wider public.
Tim Sneddon, street scene manager at NSDC, said that the number of needles having to be cleared by the council had gone up.
Mr Sneddon said: “A number of years ago clearing up needles was never heard of except for diabetes. Drug related paraphernalia isn’t something we regularly collect but it has increased.
“The incident in Yardington was one where needles had accumulated, although it is not necessarily an area used for drugs. There are some areas where we know drugs are taken – 80 needles were found in Ellesmere three to four years ago and that was drug related.”
Exclusive by Emma Kasprzak
