Agenda item

Buckinghamshire Council became a unitary authority on 1 April 2020 and at that point inherited different arrangements for the charging for garden waste services from the four district councils.  The current arrangements were for residents residing in the former Aylesbury Vale, Chiltern and South Bucks areas to have an ‘Opt In’ service where participating residents were charged for the collection of their garden waste, whereas residents residing in the former Wycombe area were not charged separately for garden waste collection service for their first bin or bags.

Chargeable garden waste services were an important way to reduce costs and prioritise essential Council services.  Chargeable garden waste services delivered significant savings for the Council and currently generated a gross annual income of circa £2.6m. Aligning charges was estimated to generate an additional gross income of between £900,000 and £1.1m annually.

Four options were presented in the Cabinet report, with option 1 the recommended option, which was to introduce a chargeable Opt in kerbside garden waste collection service in the former Wycombe District Council area from July 2022.

In addition to harmonisation of charges across Buckinghamshire the report recommended harmonising the operational arrangements for garden waste services to provide the same standard of service to all participating residents.

The Controlled Waste (England and Wales) Regulations 2012 provided powers that local authorities had the discretion to charge for collection and disposal of certain wastes.  Paragraph 4 of Schedule 1 of these regulations set out that a council may charge for the collection (but not the disposal) of household garden waste.

Cabinet had previously heard questions from Ward Members, Councillors Tony Green, Lesley Clarke OBE and Katrina Wood in the Written Questions item at the start of the meeting and considered this information as part of their deliberations.

RESOLVED –

(1)          That to provide equity across all areas of Buckinghamshire, it be agreed for the Council to harmonise Garden Waste charges across all of Buckinghamshire by introducing ‘Opt In’ charging from July 2022 for the Wycombe area.

(2)          That the operational arrangements for Garden Waste collection services across all of Buckinghamshire be harmonised, as detailed in the Cabinet report.

Buckinghamshire Council became a unitary authority on 1 April 2020 and at that point inherited different arrangements for the charging for garden waste services from the four district councils.  The current arrangements were for residents residing in the former Aylesbury Vale, Chiltern and South Bucks areas to have an ‘Opt In’ service where participating residents were charged for the collection of their garden waste, whereas residents residing in the former Wycombe area were not charged separately for garden waste collection service for their first bin or bags.

The Cabinet Member for Finance, Resources, Property and Assets informed Members that chargeable garden waste services were an important way to reduce costs and prioritise essential Council services.  Chargeable garden waste services delivered significant savings for the Council and currently generated a gross annual income of circa £2.6m. Aligning charges was estimated to generate an additional gross income of between £900,000 and £1.1m annually. This income had been calculated using the annual subscription fee of £50. If a free service was given across Buckinghamshire it would cost the Council over £8 million in the first year and this would impact on frontline services.

Four options were presented in the Cabinet report, with option 1 the recommended option, which was to introduce a chargeable Opt in kerbside garden waste collection service in the former Wycombe District Council area from July 2022.

In addition to harmonisation of charges across Buckinghamshire the report recommended harmonising the operational arrangements for garden waste services to provide the same standard of service to participating residents. This included:

(i)             Introducing stickers in the former South Bucks District area to determine which residents were eligible for their garden container(s) to be emptied.

(ii)           For additional subscriptions to be charged at the same rate and expire at the same time as first subscriptions regardless of when payment was made for any additional subscription(s).

(iii)         Aligning the Garden Waste suspension period to 6 weeks for the winter period.

The Controlled Waste (England and Wales) Regulations 2012 provided powers that local authorities had the discretion to charge for collection and disposal of certain wastes.  Paragraph 4 of Schedule 1 of these regulations set out that a council may charge for the collection (but not the disposal) of household garden waste.

Cabinet had previously heard questions from Ward Members, Councillors Tony Green, Lesley Clarke OBE and Katrina Wood in the Written Questions item at the start of the meeting and considered this information as part of their deliberations.

Cabinet Members raised the following during discussion:

·                Cabinet Members recognised that whilst this policy change would have a potential impact on Wycombe residents, the current charging arrangements discriminate against Chiltern, South Bucks and Aylesbury residents. The introduction of a charge would treat residents across the whole of the Council’s area as equal. As the Council was now unitary it was important to have policy harmonisation. The Leader emphasised the fact that most residents had good access to a Household Waste Recycling Centre which could be used as an alternative to paying the collection charge.

·    Reference was made to Councillor Green’s question and charging different rates depending on use, which could also be applied to those with disabilities. However, this would be very complex and costly to administer. The proposed recommendations were the best solution.

·    A Cabinet Member welcomed  the fact that there would be a robust communications campaign after the decision had been taken to ensure that there was sufficient notice of the changes, procedures for opting into the service were advertised and alternatives to treating garden waste either at home or at HRCs were set out for residents to act on in good time. Communications across Buckinghamshire could now be harmonised on waste issues.

·    An operational question was raised regarding the stickers and clarity regarding subscription. The Service Director for Neighbourhood Services reported that South Bucks residents would get a new sticker sent to them to put on their bins.

·    The cost of the service was very reasonable. However if they needed to use the Household Waste Recycling Service this was a good alternative and customers had given 100% satisfaction rate with the service provided at these sites.

·    Only 35% of the population used this service and it would be unfair to charge all residents if they did not need this collection service.

RESOLVED –

(1)          That to provide equity across all areas of Buckinghamshire, it be agreed for the Council to harmonise Garden Waste charges across all of Buckinghamshire by introducing ‘Opt In’ charging from July 2022 for the Wycombe area.

(2)          That the operational arrangements for Garden Waste collection services across all of Buckinghamshire be harmonised, as detailed in the Cabinet report.