Meeting documents

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Contact: Democratic Services  01895 837236; Email: democraticservices@chilternandsouthbucks.gov.uk

Items
No. Item

34.

Minutes pdf icon PDF 78 KB

To approve the minutes of the Chiltern, South Bucks & Wycombe Joint Waste Collection Committee meeting held on 3 December 2018.

Minutes:

The minutes of the Chiltern, South Bucks & Wycombe Joint Waste Collection Committee held on 3 December 2018 were approved and signed by the Chairman as a correct record.

35.

Declarations of Interest

Minutes:

Councillors P Martin and L Sullivan both declared interests as Buckinghamshire County Councillors.

36.

Waste Service Highlight Report pdf icon PDF 121 KB

Minutes:

The Committee considered a report providing an overview of the joint waste service for the period from October to December 2018. This included the budget, key targets, formal complaints and key risks. During discussion the following key points were made:-

 

·         The total number of properties for waste collections had increased by 371

·         The number of bulk bin properties had increased in Chiltern and Wycombe, with South Bucks figures still to be validated

·         Customer Experience Programme - Waste Officers were working closely with Customer Services to design new smart forms for the new CRM lite. Work was taking place with Biffa and Serco to integrate their systems into the platform. System will partially go live on 20 May and fully in July

·         With regard to staff resources, the Team would be reducing from 5.8 to 4. Planned deadline for this was May 2019

·         There was an underspend on salaries due to vacancies and time taken to fill them. Contract costs for Wycombe were slightly overspent

·         For South Bucks, green waste income was slightly higher than budgeted

·         With regard to recycling rates, it was difficult to compare as Chiltern and Wycombe figures were per month and South Bucks were based on a rolling programme. Joint waste contract figures for December 2018 had expectedly declined due to the winter

·         In relation to missed collections both the joint waste contract and South Bucks were below the monthly performance aspirations

·         Customer Services were now collecting statistics on the percentage of customers dealt with at first point of contact

·         Reference was made to formal complaints and compliments and it was noted that the largest number of complaints were in relation to waste left on road (18 for quarter 3)

·         For the Risk Register, Brexit had been added. Members were informed that the Environment Agency had asked for a plan to be put in place and officers were asked to share this with Joint Committee Members.

 

The Joint Waste Team also provided Members with a presentation highlighting some of the initiatives which had been taking place. These included:-

·         An annual calendar with inserts detailing waste collection dates was sent out to 120,000 residents

·         Information inserts were distributed detailing what to put into recycling boxes, “inside the box”

·         “Bin it for good”, and “Keep Britain Tidy” signs were put onto bins, linked to charities who received funding linked to the weight of waste collected from litter bins

·         Food waste recycling was discussed and reference was made to what type of bags should line the food caddies. Officers reported both paper and plastic bags were advised and it was agreed that this information would be sent out to all Councillors

·         Website improvements had been made to enable more user friendly information to be available for residents

·         Reference was made to the Christmas events which had taken place which promoted recycling and waste reduction.

·         There would be a plastic awareness campaign taking place on 13 March 2019 with Beaconsfield Town Council

·         Greater use of social media such as Facebook, Instagram,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 36.

37.

Overview of Resources and Waste Strategy pdf icon PDF 159 KB

Minutes:

The Joint Committee was provided with a report which highlighted some of the key themes that the recently published Resources and Waste Strategy had introduced with an initial consideration of the potential impacts on the Joint Waste Service.

 

Reference was made to the adoption of the European Union circular target for recycling (65%) by 2035. The Strategy also proposed a number of other measures; a Deposit Return Scheme and Extended Producer Responsibility which would be key structural changes to waste management. 

 

Members were informed that these proposals would be subject to consultations on when further details would be determined on the detail of the schemes, i.e. in relation to the Deposit Return Scheme, what type and size of bottles to be included.

 

Officers informed the Joint Committee that a 65% recycling rate was achievable through a variety of measures such as decreasing refuse collection frequency or capacity offered to residents, offering a free garden waste service and improving enforcement and promotions. There were consequences of any of these options such as negative PR impact of decreased frequency of collections and reduced revenue from the collection of green waste.

 

Members agreed that the response to the consultation should be submitted as a joint response from the three local authorities in the partnership to ensure a consistent approach. The Joint Committee would be kept fully briefed on the Strategy and on the consultation as it progresses and also be informed on what other local authorities were proposing.

 

RESOLVED - (1) That the recently published Resources and Waste Strategy be noted.

 

(2) That approval be given to engaging with the Resources and Waste Strategy consultation process to ensure beneficial outcomes on behalf of the three southern districts.

 

(3) That resources and services be managed to achieve new recycling targets as detailed in the Strategy.

38.

Update on the Recycling Centre Review

Minutes:

Members were provided with an update on the Recycling Centre review.

 

The Joint Committee was reminded that reports had been submitted to Wycombe, South Bucks and Chiltern Councils, requesting that consideration be given to the future provision of recycling centres provided by the authorities.

 

The reason for the proposed closures was that many of the facilities were being misused, there were health and safety concerns and the facilities were being under used, now that most residents had kerbside collections of most materials. Members were advised that the review was timely with the commencement of a new joint waste collection contract in spring 2020.

 

Both Wycombe and South Bucks had agreed to support in principle the closure of the recycling centres in their Districts, however Chiltern District Services Overview Committee did not support the recommendation to remove the remaining recycling centres in the District and requested that a further report be brought to the Committee with evidence on the usage of each individual centre.

 

Discussion took place on residents having access to domestic waste collections that included recycling, however, there were concerns that Serco, were struggling to collect waste from the increasing number of flats. There was a problem with residents in flats and on High Streets due to a lack of space within properties and outside of properties, to store recycled materials.

 

It was agreed that local Members should work closely with residents and with Resident Associations to provide assurances and that solutions for these properties would need to be implemented on a case by case basis.

 

RESOLVED: That the update on the Recycling Centre Review be noted.

39.

Exclusion of the Public

To resolve that under Section 100(A)(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 the public be excluded from the meeting for the following item(s) of business on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Part I of Schedule 12A of the Act.

 

Paragraph 3

Information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular persons (including the authority holding that information).

 

Minutes:

RESOLVED - That under section 100 (A) (4) of the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended) the public be excluded from the meeting for the following item(s) of business on the grounds that they involved the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act.

 

Paragraph 3 - Information relation to the financial or business affairs of any particular person (including the authority holding that information).

 

40.

Serco Contract

Minutes:

The Joint Committee was provided with a report which updated Members on the Serco contract in respect of two outstanding issues previously reported.

 

RESOLVED - That the update be noted and officers be requested to continue with negotiations with Serco. 

41.

Waste Procurement Communications

Minutes:

The Joint Committee was provided with a report detailing stakeholder briefing requirements for the Joint Waste Collection Procurement.

 

RESOLVED - (1) That the communication plan, detailed in the confidential report, be put into effect.

 

(2) That the key messages, detailed in the confidential report, be included in every briefing.

 

(3) That approval be given to the formation of an officer task force to deal with communications for the joint waste procurement project.

42.

Procurement Progress Update

Minutes:

Consideration was given to a report which updated the Joint Committee on progress with the Joint Waste Collection Procurement.

 

RESOLVED - That the confidential report be noted.