Some leaves can stay without leaving the whole yard untidy. Decide which beds will retain a light layer and which lawns, entrances, and paths you want cleared.
Set Different Goals for Different Areas
Start with doors, walks, and places you need to use regularly. Then look at planting beds separately. A visible front border may have different appearance priorities from a sheltered back garden.
Waterloo encourages leaving light layers of leaves under trees and shrubs as habitat. See the City's leave-the-leaves guidance. That isn’t the same as dumping every collected leaf into one bed or covering small plants without assessing the result.
Give the Cleanup Crew a Clear Boundary
Mark the beds that should retain material and explain what “tidy” means there. You might want litter removed and edges defined while leaving the interior largely undisturbed. Other areas may need loose material collected and taken away.
Discuss where excess leaves will go before the visit. Moving them from the lawn to an already crowded corner only relocates the problem.