A SALISBURY woman has been left "frustrated" after being put on hold to county councils for nearly an hour.

Merrin Holroyd, from Salisbury, has recently contacted Wiltshire Council and Hampshire Council for a series of issues but is "irritated" with the length of time she had been put on hold.

The 79-year-old was recently left waiting on the phone for 45 minutes, and another time was left waiting for three weeks for the social services team to return her call.

Merrin said it is the "less vital services being cut", adding: "It really is difficult trying to get through by phone, what if there was something really urgent that needed to be reported?

"It's really terrible waiting - you just don't bother and give up.

"[The council] is good at dealing with the problems when you get through, but you might not have the time to wait."

Merrin has previously called the councils for issues including social services, acquiring a Blue Badge, and fly-tipping.

She added: "It seems to be the morning that is the worst, the phone just rings and rings.

"It is very bad and it just makes me so irritated and frustrated, and I do not know what the council will do about it."

Richard Clewer, cabinet member for corporate services, said: “We appreciate call waiting times are currently longer than expected for some people and apologise for any inconvenience caused. This is due to higher call volumes than expected and a number of vacancies and staff absences within the Customer Services team.

"We are currently recruiting to these roles so that we can continue to assist residents in a timely manner.”