More investment to improve bin collections

The council is set to invest a further £1.3 million in waste and recycling services as part of ongoing work to improve the reliability of collections and modernise operations.

The investment, which will be considered by Cabinet members next week, follows significant improvements already made to the service over the past two years, including the introduction of weekly food waste collections, the expansion of recycling services and investment in new vehicles, equipment and digital technology.

Picture: Councillor Tim Rowkins, Cabinet member for Net Zero and Environmental Services

Last year the council approved investment in new refuse and recycling vehicles and 9 new vehicles are now beginning to arrive and will be introduced into service in the coming months. The latest proposals would provide 4 additional crews to increase spare capacity, further investment in vehicles, stronger operational management and performance monitoring, more mechanics to keep vehicles on the road and extra support to respond quickly to missed collections.

Alongside this new investment, work is continuing to explore whether fortnightly kerbside rubbish collections could be introduced in the future. No decision has yet been made on whether to make the change, and further improvements in reliability, alongside more evidence of waste continuing to move from rubbish bins into recycling and food waste collections are needed before any decision is considered by the council’s Cabinet.

Recycling collections and weekly food waste collections would continue as they are, and any change would not apply to communal refuse and recycling collections. Those would remain on a daily collection schedule, and there is work ongoing to improve this part of the service specifically.

The age of much of the council’s collection fleet is the most significant cause of missed collections and so the increased investment in vehicles and additional mechanics for the workshop are expected to bring a step-change to day-to-day operations, resulting in an improved service for residents.

Progress on food waste and recycling

The council now collects more than 100 tonnes of food waste every week, but almost half of the material currently placed in rubbish bins could be recycled or put into food waste collections.

Data from a recent waste composition analysis found that 29.4% of residual waste is food waste (down from 38% in the previous analysis) and a further 14.6% is dry mixed recycling. Whilst the direction of travel is positive, more work is needed to encourage uptake of the council’s expanded recycling offer.

Residents with kerbside collections were also asked for their feedback on how they recycle and what they would like to see in the future. 

More than 1,600 residents have already shared their views through surveys and engagement events. Responses show strong support for recycling and food waste collections, while highlighting the importance of reliable services, adequate bin capacity and clear communication.

Councillor Tim Rowkins, Cabinet member for Net Zero and Environmental Services, said: "Over the past three years we've made major improvements to waste and recycling services, making it easier for residents to recycle more and reducing the amount of rubbish being thrown away.

“We’ve modernised our systems, invested in vehicles and improved access to information for residents.

“But we know that more work is needed to get the service to the level that residents deserve, and so we are bringing forward this further investment to improve reliability and drive towards zero missed bins.

"We are now collecting over 100 tonnes of food waste every week, but much of what remains in the refuse bins could still be recycled or composted. We need to see more of this waste coming out of the refuse and into recycling, as well as further improvements to reliability, before we consider any changes to the collection model.”