A pensioner says he and his neighbours cannot shift their garden waste because Bradford Council workers refuse to walk down a flight of steps to collect it.

Henry Peart, of Elmwood Terrace, Bracken Bank, Keighley, said: "If I could carry these bags myself, I would.

"The thing is, I can't and neither can two of my neighbours."

Mr Peart, 74, who suffers from chronic asthma, angina and arthritis, said the problems with the garden waste began three months ago, when residents were given large green bags for the waste.

He said since the new bags were issued, the men who arrive once a month to collect them expect the bags to be left at the side of the road.

Mr Peart's home, along with the other houses on the street, is set back from the road at the bottom of a steep embankment.

Mr Peart, a keen gardener, who spent 40 years working as a military nurse, said: "If the bags aren't at the side of the road the men just drive straight past."

However, a spokesman for Bradford Council said the failure to collect the bags was due to a "misunderstanding" and that the problem was being resolved.

Mr Peart said: "There are about 12 steps I'd need to drag these three bags up and they're in a poor state of repair."

He said the refusal to collect garden waste from his doorstep contrasted with the helpfulness of his bin men and the people who picked up his used bottles and cans for recycling.

"They're really nice people - I've had no problems with them whatsoever," he said.

He added that those workers were quite happy to go down the steps to pick up the rubbish.

He said when the garden waste was not collected, he complained to Bradford Council.

He said the council grudgingly agreed to a one-off doorstep collection but would not accept this as a routine duty for "health and safety" reasons.

Mr Peart's next door neighbour, 71-year-old Gladys Hill, said: "We've all had a go at the council but we've got nowhere.

"It's stupid really because there's no way we can take the bags up those steps."

She said she had a ruptured stomach, diabetes, an enlarged heart and arthritis.

She added this meant she could hardly vacuum her own house, let alone haul around heavy rubbish bags.

However, Ian Quigley, Bradford Council's recycling and trade waste manager, said: "The council provides a green waste kerbside collection service for 112,000 residents in the Bradford district and we have received very few complaints.

"On this particular occasion, there was some misunderstanding about where the green bags should be left.

"We have been to visit Mr Peart to resolve the misunderstanding. We have collected the bags and will continue to provide a high quality collection service."