Council reviews waste and recycling collection rounds to create greener and more efficient service

Waste and recycling collections in West Cheshire are about to be transformed to create a greener, more efficient service for residents.

Approximately 60 per cent of all properties in the borough will receive a new collection day.

Cheshire West Recycling (CWR) has reviewed the existing arrangements and proposed a new model. It will increase working efficiency and create a fairer system for collection staff. This will reduce CO2 emissions and contribute to the borough’s Climate Emergency agenda. 

The changes are also a response to the increased number of properties in the borough. Between 2012 and 2020, the number of households in the borough increased by 13,000. This has resulted in a nine per cent rise in the demand for the waste and recycling service. 

Cheshire West Recycling Managing Director, Rob Edmondson, said: “The increase in demand means we have had to rebalance the collection rounds to provide a better value for money and more efficient service. It means we can reduce the number of collection rounds, which in turn results in reducing costs and will have a beneficial effect on the environment.”

“It is standard practice for waste and recycling collections services to periodically review their rounds to ensure they are maximising resources. It will also support the long term changes to the service introduced through the new Waste Management Strategy.”

Mr Edmondson added: “We would like to thank all our customers in advance for continuing to work with us to help create the best collection service we can.”

Last month, Cheshire West and Chester Full Council approved plans for the new Waste Management Strategy, which seeks to encourage residents to reduce the amount of waste the borough produces and to recycle more. The changes include the introduction of larger capacity recycling bins. Food waste collections will continue to be weekly and there will be the introduction of a charge for the garden waste collection service, which residents can choose to take up or make their own arrangements. 

Householders in the borough affected by the changes will be notified by a tag fixed to their bins. New waste and recycling collection calendars outlining the changes will also be delivered to residents. Householders with bag collections will be informed by letter.

The bin tags and letters informing residents of the changes to their collections will be delivered to residents between Monday 30 August and Friday 10 September. 

Delivery of the new waste and recycling collection calendars will begin on Monday 20 September. These will also include information about the annual suspension of the garden waste collection service and collection arrangements during the festive period.

It is anticipated that the new routes and rounds will be introduced from Monday 11 October.

Cheshire West and Chester Council’s Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Environment, Highways and Strategic Transport, Cllr Karen Shore, said: “The transformation of the waste and recycling collections in Cheshire West and Chester will provide us with a modern service that will help us to meet the challenges we face both in terms of reducing costs and in supporting our ambitions around climate change. 

“There will be several changes to the waste and recycling service over the coming months that will transform the service. We want people to embrace these changes. We will continue to listen to our residents throughout this process and keep them updated on any developments.”

For more information about changes to the Waste and Recycling Service in Cheshire West and Chester, visit:

https://www.cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk/residents/waste-and-recycling/waste-management-strategy-your-questions-answered.aspx