Voters tell candidates how to scoop election win

It's a warm day in Lincoln and an ice cream van's chime is pulling in customers.

The BBC has hopped onboard to ask people what they are looking for ahead of this week's local elections.

Just one third of the City of Lincoln Council - 11 of the 33 seats - are up for grabs.

While tucking into their favourite treats, people appear eager to share what's on their minds, from new housing, congestion to youth services.

William Hall, 39, a software developer from the city's West End, says the council must insist on more room for parking when granting planning permission for new homes.

"It's tricky because you want people to have a car and go to work but they can't park when they get home," he says.

"We live next to eight houses, which means extra cars on the street and it's all got a bit busy."

The city council aims to see more than 17,000 new homes built by 2038, many of them in areas close to the city's bypass.

But Robert Crompton, 56, who works in IT and lives in Birchwood, also says that the way new estates and roads are planned needs to be changed.

"It would be nice to see the bypass made wider and the council should push for that if it's involved in allowing the housing," he said.

Lincolnshire has a two-tier local government system. There is the larger Lincolnshire County Council, responsible for big spending areas like social care and roads, and smaller district authorities that deal with matters such as planning, bin collections and street cleaning.

City of Lincoln Council has been controlled by Labour for the past 15 years, but other parties including the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats, who already have some seats, and Reform UK and The Green Party, which do not, are campaigning hard.

Megan Kirk, 22, an accounts manager, works on one of the city's industrial estates.

"A few more bins would be good as there's quite a bit of litter around," she says.

Andrew Nicoll, 32, a barman from the St Giles estate, enthusiastically tucks into his ice cream.

"Nothing like it on a hot day," he says.

He's clear what he wants to hear from the local politicians.

"Get more things for kids to stop them committing crimes," he says.

"There's nothing for them to do which is why they're getting into trouble."

Unlike many local authorities, City of Lincoln Council has kept its stock of more than 8,000 council homes and manages them itself.

Reece Adair, 33, from Ermine, is unemployed and waiting for a council home.

"I was homeless and slept on the streets for two years and now live with my mum," he says.

"For men, you're on the list for a very, very long time. For me, it's been four years now."

Parks and recreation are also the city council's responsibility.

Pauline Gray, 50, wanders through The Arboretum park in the heart of the city. She's with her dog.

She lives in the Bracebridge Heath area but says it's too expensive for many to travel into the city.

"Car parks are very expensive, much more than anywhere like Newark, and I'm disappointed with the number of empty shops in the city centre," she says.

Local elections will be held on 7 May and a full list of candidates for the City of Lincoln Council can be found here.

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