Recycle, Recycle, Recycle – More, More, More for less!

Stratford-on-Avon District Council is one of the top recycling councils in the UK.  Together with Biffa Waste Services and the diligence of residents, Stratford District currently recycles over 60% of its waste.  And the service has one of the highest customer satisfaction rates.

With a view to continuing service improvements, Stratford-on-Avon District Council's Cabinet has provisionally agreed to extend arrangements with Biffa Waste Services Ltd, so that they will continue to provide the District Council's Waste and Recycling collection service until 2022.

With the contract extension approved residents will be able to recycle even more materials on their doorstep including textiles, batteries and small electronic/electric goods. The precise details of how the scheme will operate are currently being agreed and further information will be available shortly. It is hoped that the updated scheme will be rolled out to residents from April this year.

The extension option will also result in budget savings of approx £400,000 each year for the next 9 years and ensure continuity of service whilst giving the opportunity to make some changes to the way the services are provided to ensure they are easy to use and meet residents' needs.

Cllr Lynda Organ, Technical Services Portfolio says: “This is a win-win situation all round – recycling more for less money, what's not to like about that?  This is a great opportunity to enhance what are already highly regarded front-line Council services.  The Cabinet has considered a number of options including sharing a service with another local authority but were convinced that the Biffa proposal offered the best value for residents.  We look forward to working with our partner Biffa to continue to deliver a high standardrefuse and recycling collection service and street cleaning service to our residents."

Enhancements to the service that were negotiated by the District Council as part of the extension option are:

• The introduction of in-cab technology and 360° degree cameras on the collection vehicles which will improve the performance of the service, protect the collection crews and allow more effective monitoring of the service.

• To widen the range of materials that can be collected at the kerbside for recycling (as mentioned above).  This will divert more material from going to landfill and boost the environmental performance of the service and of the Council.

The seven year contract extension was included as an option when the contract was first awarded in 2008.

Please note this item is still subject to call-in until 5pm on Wednesday 23 January