A RUBBISH scheme designed to prevent non-borough residents from accessing recycling services will undergo a revamp.
Instead of showing staff at the re3 Recycling Centres in Bracknell and Reading an orange windscreen disc, residents will be required to present a document that identifies them as a resident of either Bracknell Forest, Reading or Wokingham Boroughs.
Re3 said that the windscreen permits are already being used by fewer visitors and, to save the cost of reprinting and distributing new permits, the councils are asking residents to use commonly held documents instead.
The stickers were introduced in 2016 and issued to more than 180,000 households but any residents who moved in or lost their permit have been asked to bring an alternative proof of residency instead.
From Saturday, February 1, the re3 centres will only accept the following:
- Driving licence
- Current council tax bill
- Utility bill, bank or credit card statement (issued no more than four months prior to the date of visit)
- Bracknell Forest resident e+ card
- Photocard bus pass issued by a re3 council
- Valid blue badge or residents’ parking permit issued by a re3 council.
Recycling Centres at Longshot Lane, Bracknell and Smallmead, Island Road are being visited by almost 800,000 visitors each year. re3 residents are welcome to use both of the Recycling Centres to recycle
and dispose of a wide range of items including garden waste, glass, wood or electrical items.
In a joint statement, Cllr Dorothy Hayes MBE, Bracknell Forest Council’s Executive Member for Environment and Chairman of the Joint Waste Disposal Board, Cllr Sophia James, Reading Borough Council’s Lead Councillor for Neighbourhoods and Communities and Cllr Parry Batth, Wokingham Borough Council’s Executive Member for Environment and Leisure, said: “The residency checks are crucial to ensure that Bracknell Forest, Reading and Wokingham Borough residents are not paying for the disposal of waste from visitors outside the re3 area, via their council tax.
“We’re thankful to all residents who use our fantastic facilities regularly and we estimate that majority of them are already using commonly held documents to demonstrate their address, rather than windscreen stickers.
“This type of residency checks proved to be very efficient and is much more cost-effective as there is no need to re-issue stickers on a regular basis.
“Unfortunately, we’ve also noted cases of fake permits being presented by visitors, which made them less and less reliable.”
