Cheshire East Council is considering reducing the frequency of black bin collections to help fund the introduction of weekly food waste collections across the borough.
'Simpler Recycling Scheme' legislation announced in October 2023 means that all local authorities must collect food waste from their residents on a weekly basis by no later than 1 April 2026.
Next week, the council's environment and communities committee will consider a report that seeks approval to move forward with plans for rolling out the changes in Cheshire East – based on a proposal to collect food waste alongside the fortnightly garden bin rounds, and then separately as a food waste round in the alternate weeks.
The council is also proposing to consult on plans to move to collecting black bins once every three weeks. If implemented, these changes would be delivered at the same time as the weekly food waste collections begin.
It is estimated that by doing this, it could increase recycling rates by almost 5 per cent, as well as reduce the financial burden of introducing weekly food waste collections in Cheshire East by more than £1m each year.
Councillor Mick Warren, chair of Cheshire East Council's environment and communities committee, said: "Introducing weekly food waste collections is a significant operational change affecting almost all our residents, and the financial impacts will also be significant.
"At the moment, we don't know how much funding we will receive from Government to compensate the council for introducing these changes, and there's a significant risk that the funding won't cover the costs in full.
"Any shortfall will place an even bigger pressure on the council's finances – we're already forecasting a funding gap of £100m over the next four years.
"That's why – along with wishing to encourage people to reduce, reuse and recycle more of their waste – at the same time as weekly food waste collections are introduced, we're proposing to move to collecting black bins once every three weeks.
"It offers the best value for money and would reduce the demand on our existing fleet of bin wagons and staff and make a significant revenue saving in excess of £1m per year."
In late 2023, a consultation was launched by the Government which included draft guidance requiring councils to collect residual (black bin) waste each fortnight as a minimum.
The council responded to this consultation, saying that this would have a detrimental impact on the ability of councils to increase recycling rates and to be able to join up large-scale operational changes because of weekly food waste collections.
Cllr Warren added: "We understand that as a local authority, if the guidance is passed by Government through the Parliamentary process, we could not make these proposed changes to black bin collections.
"However, we are proposing to carry out this consultation now so that we are in a position to move forward with what is the most cost effective and least risky solution for introducing weekly food waste collections, which can also meet the deadline previously set by the Government."
Subject to committee approval, the consultation on black bin collections is expected to launch in September. The feedback received will be considered before final proposals are developed and brought back to committee for a decision later this year.
UPDATED Monday 15th July
Cheshire East Council has provided the following clarification:
"The recommendation, which we are seeking approval from the environment and communities committee to implement, is that residents would be given a new separate food bin (not a wheelie bin but larger than a kitchen caddy) which would be emptied each week.
"During the first week, these new bins would be emptied by the same vehicles carrying out garden waste collections. For clarity – whether someone had subscribed to the garden waste service or not, they would receive a separate food bin.
"During the alternate weeks, the food waste bins would be collected by other fleet vehicles that only collect food waste and no other materials.
"The council is also proposing to consult on plans to move to collecting black bins once every three weeks.
"If implemented, this change to collection frequencies would be implemented at the same time as the weekly food waste collections begin."
Comments
Here's what readers have had to say so far. Why not add your thoughts below.
We get year on year tax rises and nonsense about making appointments to go to the few remaining tips, aside from £56 additional tax to empty green bins... then today the BBC publishes CEC to face effective Bankruptcy ... https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cgl75jkk9r1o
Yet again not a word from the anonymous Rob Polkinghorne anointed CEO on over £250k+ in a role that cant be afforded.
CEC employs over 5000 permanent staff and needs to start making the swathing cuts industry has had to make starting with the CEO , Sam Corcoran and others..
They offer such abysmal value for money that they couldn't afford to exist exist outside the cosseted realm of public financing.
No one needs a salary of over £100k/year to understand that more new homes, fewer bin collections and the closure of our tips will create huge problems for the area.
As usual, Cheshire East tax payers will be forced to cover the cost of their endless ineptitude.
Quality of some of the services by Cheshire East owned Ansa Environmental Services Ltd are poor for example grass cutting and road/gutter cleaning.
But if they restore that funding to pre-Austerity levels, they presumably will not be blamed as local council services will be properly funded.
They issued their obligatory bankruptcy warning notice months ago and at the same time announced the appointment of a replacement CEO @circa £250K salary - they are top heavy with upper/middle management/non-producers and when the money starts to run out they simply cut [our] services but not overheads/head count or look for 'real efficiencies'.
It's unfair to blame the new man but what did his predecessor actually bring to the party in the first place (and by the way she moved to Bradford and guess which Yorkshire unitary body also declared pending bankruptcy earlier in 2024...?).
I realise it's easy for the customer to simply complain but CEC appear to just get worse and worse and the rate payer forks out more for less in return. Are CEC the worst, probably not, should we expect [much] better from our Council, darn right we should.
Week 1 = Grey bin & food
Week 2 = Grey bin & food
Week 3 = Black bin & food
Week 4 = Grey bin & food
Week 5 = Grey bin & food
Week 6 = Black bin & food etc
My grey bin is almost overflowing each fortnight, while my black bin is barely half full. Many people are the same, so they are putting their recycling stuff into the black bin instead. This change allows us to collect more recycling material and save more money too. Therefore, I welcome it but realise it will be a bit more awkward to remember what bin to put out each week.
The previous government has legally forced councils to collect food waste each week, so we have to introduce it. They did not say how it would be paid for though, so we will lobby the new government for an answer. Yes, I will blame Labour if they don't deliver. They complained long enough about "Tory austerity cuts", so they now need to deliver more. As an independent, I can criticise whoever runs parliament as my only loyalty is to the people of Wilmslow.
Regarding your other concerns. Next week comes the initial transformational report for CEC. This will address organisational issues that have existed in the council since it was created in 2009. Additionally, it will also show how we can save £25m each year for the next 4 years. This will involve widespread reforms, introducing new technology, some redundancies and a data driven approach to how it operates. It will enable us to clearly show how Cheshire East performs in delivering the services you most want.
Our new CEO is in the thick of all this work. The report and the level of change it covers will demonstrate what he has been doing for the past 6 months. It should also help you to understand why we decided to pay such a high salary for someone with experience of implementing these widescale organisational changes.
Best regards
Mark
Cllr Mark Goldsmith
Residents of Wilmslow
We are cajoled into paying much more tax for much less service and we are so busy batting “Underfunding from Central Govt” against “Abject inefficiency of Local Councils” that we don’t even notice the pace at which our services are diminished whilst our costs increase.
We are being taken for fools and we are nodding in agreement as it happens.
Are my taxes paying these delusional civil servants and council staff ? Are there no common sense tests for public servants jobs or are they just handed from father to son( or friends of a friend's). This is a ridiculous proposal and wasteful endeavor, it should be "binned"immediately, to coin a phrase !
I'll never agree on the CEO issue, but that's not the topic of discussion here.
Like Mark, I have far more in my grey bin normally, so the possible change won't pose me a big problem.
However I despair more about central government interference, the imposition of illogical rules on councils is just another example of government paying lip service to "devolution" but continuing to interfere to suit their own ends. The food collection system we used to have for free, and which continues to anyone prepared to pay for it today, is fit for purpose and there's no need for it to be weekly other than by diktat.
There is no proposed change to the green bins, so they remain on a two week cycle.
Therefore, with the grey / black bins on a three week cycle, they will be out of kilter with the green bin collection.
Ultimately, i think remembering which bin, is which week, is the biggest issue. We will probably need a chart.
Best regards
Mark
Maybe your black bin instead full but under plenty overflowing when I walk my dog
Chris - your food waste will be collected weekly. So no need to put it in the black bin. What the food waste bin will be is not yet known. However, it is likely to involve a new bin and new refuse lorries too.
Robbie Moore MP (no, I’ve never heard of him either) announced it when he was Recycling Minister in March 2024. The Conservatives were thinking of introducing a 7 bin collection, but thankfully dropped that idea in Sept 2023.
You will have a new weekly food bin collection.
The whole point of this government initiative is to stop putting food in the black or green bin, so it can be processed separately.
It will therefore need a separate bin that you will be given. The size, shape or colour of that bin has not yet been announced.
"Your food waste will be collected weekly. So no need to put it in the black bin. What the food waste bin will be is not yet known. However, it is likely to involve a new bin and new refuse lorries too."
I thought C/E had no money to spend !
I agree with the comments above we don’t have that much food wastage and it certainly does not warrant such a big change in the bin collections. What about our health and welfare, that takes priority.
We spend it on people like the Wilmslow resident I know who:
Is in his thirties with a young family. Unfortunately, he fell down some stairs and damaged his leg. He is currently paralysed on one side and the doctors do not believe he will get any feeling back. His other leg is too weak to support him, so he is wheelchair bound. He has also started having seizures, which means he has lost his driving license and his managerial job. He is now on benefits.
He has been told he cannot go back to his rented house on an upmarket estate in Wilmslow because it is not suitable for a wheelchair. So, after 2 months in hospital, social services have found him a temporary care home in Macclesfield. He had to argue for that, as they initially wanted to send him to Stoke because it is cheaper. However, that would be even more difficult for his partner, daughter and parents to visit him.
There are care homes in Wilmslow he could go into, but they cost £200 - £300 a week more, so Cheshire East won’t fund that. Social services are looking for rented / social accommodation that can be adapted for him but that will take both time and money.
Which is why we are asking you to put your grey bin outside your house a bit more often than your black bin. The money it will save will be spent helping people like this man and his family.
Best regards
Mark
Cllr Mark Goldsmith
Residents of Wilmslow
The black bin is alright as it is, if its left for three weeks, the amount of rubbish that will be left for rats to feast on
What I see though is that central government have dictated that all councils must have separate food waste collections - wasn't this a big topic at the last local election (18 months or so ago) when the local Conservative candidates explicitly stated that this would not be the case - as their Westminster colleagues had paused the plan for the local elections but reinstated it just before they were turfed out of government.
So Westminster has told CEC that they must have separte bins for food - and therefore a separate collection. "But this will increase costs" say CEC, "Can we have some funding to pay for this?" "No" reply Westminster, "This plan is much better for the environment and recycling." Leaving CEC with a fixed budget to add in an increased collection and alter the equipment needed to do so.
Sure CEC may not be the most efficient, but when faced with directives from government to increase services and provide more, with no additional funding and during a period of increased (although stabilising) inflation; it's hard to see how anyone could balance the books. And yes, there are some senior managers on high salaries, but paying them less will result in less skilled or experienced folk in those roles trying to manage an increasingly complex situation. I presonally would rather have a high cost experienced CEO but ensure that they are properly performance managed on issues that they can actually influence and not on the crazy ideas that come out of Westminster.