More than 350 rat callouts were made by Trafford Council last year, figures have revealed.
Despite many councils making huge efforts to reduce the problem, many residents of Greater Manchester are still plagued by the pesky vermin in and around their homes.
Rat problems hit some areas worse than others – which is why the Local Democracy Reporting Service has created the "Greater Manchester Rat League for 2022".
After submitting Freedom of Information (FOI) requests to each borough council, data has revealed the worst offenders in the region for rat problems last year.
Authorities record the data in different ways so the statistics have been broken down by ward, postcode and area – with some clarifying if the reports came from inside or outside the house (external or internal callouts).
It is important to note that some areas are bigger and also have more densely populated communities, which may affect the figures.
The data shows that there were more reports from inside the home than outside. Wigan had the most callouts, but claim that this was due to their three visit approach tripled their figures.
In Trafford, 363 council callouts were reported.
Sitting near the bottom of the table is Trafford with very little in the way of callouts in each ward. Urmston was the worst offender by only a fine margin.
A spokesperson for the council said: “Trafford Council provides a pest control service which allows residents to access low-cost professional treatment for rats and mice.
"Alongside this we also investigate reports of rats and mice in public and semi-public areas, requiring land-owners to demonstrate that they have an adequate programme of pest control.
“We also undertake an annual programme of sewer-baiting in partnership with United Utilities, which helps to suppress the rat population.”
Breakdown of data by ward
Undisclosed location
Total callouts: 61
Altrincham
Internal callouts: 14
External callouts: 12
Ashton Upon Mersey
Internal callouts: 6
External callouts: 5
Bowdon
Internal callouts: 20
External callouts: 6
Broadheath
Internal callouts: 8
External callouts: 3
Brooklands
Internal callouts: 6
External callouts: 3
Bucklow St Martins
Internal callouts: 14
External callouts: 2
Clifford
Internal callouts: 10
External callouts: 6
Davyhulme East
Internal callouts: 6
External callouts: 7
Davyhulme West
Internal callouts: 5
Flixton
Internal callouts: 12
Unrecorded: 1
Gorse Hill
Internal callouts: 13
External callouts: 4
Hale
Internal callouts: 20
External callouts: 7
Hale Barns
Internal callouts: 8
External callouts: 3
Hale Central
External callouts: 1
Longford
Internal callouts: 19
External callouts: 10
Unrecorded: 1
Priory
Internal callouts: 8
External callouts: 7
Sale Moor
Internal callouts: 10
External callouts: 1
St Mary’s
Internal callouts: 4
External callouts: 3
Stretford
Internal callouts: 8
External callouts: 4
Timperley
Internal callouts: 1
External callouts: 1
Urmston
Internal callouts: 15
External callouts: 11
Village
Internal callouts: 10
External callouts: 5
Here is the rat callouts in 2022 league table for each of the 10 Greater Manchester borough:
Wigan – 3,605
Manchester – 2,407
Salford – 1,000
Stockport – 832
Rochdale – 771
Bury – 640
Bolton – 600
Oldham – 431
Trafford – 363
Tameside – 286
For each borough there is a breakdown of data per ward/area as well as each individual council’s response to the numbers revealed by the FOI.
Not every council responded and each gave their own verdict on how they deal with vermin.
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