Forum Topic

Green waste collection - beware of spivs offering their services

Interesting to see Hounslow council pushing for residents to sign up for the paid for green waste collection service. Ealing council did just that (with the usual price increase) and then proceeded to declare that no-one used the service from December to end February so they were ending it. Whoopee, a 12 month paid for service reduced to a 9 month one for the same money. Odds on how long it will take for the Labour grandees in Hounslow to do the same?

peter king ● 22d8 Comments

Yes the council could, as could anyone else. The council's job is to provide a cost-effective, ecological service to those who want it (there is not - yet - a statutory duty to collect garden waste, unlike household waste) and having overseen the services until I resigned from the cabinet a year ago I was proud of the services we delivered and the excellent feedback (and constantly increasing uptake of the garden services)The council is not there to meet every need, hence the alternatives signposted on the website https://beta.hounslow.gov.uk/recycling-rubbish/request-collection-large-household-items-bulky-waste

Guy Lambert ● 15d

I like and appreciate the garden waste collection service - I suspect most people with a garden do. Just a note though that like everything else the year-on-year increase presented as a percentage is significantly more than can be accounted for by inflation. It's £75 compared to last year's £65 - so a lift of over 15%.

Bruce Hammal ● 16d

If you had a similar platform to Uber for which you could book collections people might be willing to accept a higher charge for a pay as you go service. Self employed drivers could pick up bags until their vehicle was full and then deposit at a collection point somewhere. The model could work for general waste as well.

Jeremy Parkinson ● 16d

If a private contractor can provide a free bin and recover reliably (well over 99.9% of the time), deliver it to a reputable garden waste recycler and provide the service for £3 per week I will support any proposal to award them any national award you can name.

Guy Lambert ● 16d

The law of unintended consequences strikes again. As happened when the Stirling Road recycling centre closed, reducing or removing a legal waste facility just leads to a big spike in fly-tipping. Guess what? the Council has to deal with this too but in a more expensive and less-efficient way than before. D'oh!

Bruce Hammal ● 16d

It may be spivs offering to do this at the moment but, if councils keep on putting up charges, a reputable private sector provider will eventually  start offering an alternative service.

Jeremy Parkinson ● 16d

The Hounslow policy has always to collect 25 times a year, only breaking over Christmas when there is little green waste and a lot of other waste. Of course, that may change considering the financial difficulties experienced by all councils but if that is planned I have heard nothing to that effect.

Guy Lambert ● 18d

There IS a big reduction in the use of the garden waste collection at the end of the year.  Ideas have changed and instead of excessive "tidying up" we are being encouraged to relax more about it and allow all those hibernating butterflies and moths and other insects to live rather than be killed off for tidiness sake.  Birds and other insect eaters don't necessarily hibernate over the winter months.There is nothing to stop you doing a bit composting for yourself if you are left with garden waste that is compostable.  Compost added to your garden soil greatly increases its uptake of rain water instead of it just becoming run-off and increasing flash flooding risk.

Philippa Bond ● 19d