MORE than 9,000 residents have had their say on the future of waste collections in Wokingham borough.
Wokingham Borough Council’s survey, which ended on Monday, December 5, sought views on two options to potentially change how often rubbish and recycling collections are made.
The council also gauged responses to the introduction of a wheeled bin for general rubbish instead of using blue plastic bags, with green waterproof bags staying for recycling.
Food waste collections in small black bins would remain weekly..
Initial findings on the survey show that 67% of respondents “like or can accept” a change to fortnightly collections of rubbish and recycling.
70% of those surveyed did not support a change to three weekly rubbish collections.
More than two thirds of people asked, 69%, said they “like or can accept” wheelie bins.
Cllr Clive Jones, leader of the council, said: “We are grateful that so many of our residents have come forward to share their views on this. As we’ve been saying for months now, our financial situation has become increasingly critical due to rising inflation, energy costs and other things.
“If we want to continue providing essential support to our residents who need it most, we need to redesign some of our services to be more efficient. Changing the way we collect rubbish and recycling can make a big difference to our budget.
“A look at the headline results of the survey tells us clearly that our residents are willing and ready to take on changes that would help us ride out the storm.”
Cllr Ian Shenton, executive member for environment, sport and leisure, said he was encouraged by the support for a change to fortnightly collections.
He added: “It’s the right thing for our finances and it’s the right thing for the environment.
“We hope to see the changes come into force as soon as possible, because this would save us about £700,000 per year right away, followed by a higher amount after starting a new waste collection contract in 2026.”
The survey drew criticism from opposition councillors and some residents as no option to keep the current weekly collections was available to select.
Cllr Norman Jorgensen, shadow executive member for environment said: “We have seen that the Liberal Democrat/Labour council have a habit of ignoring the results of consultations and the wishes of residents when it is convenient to them.
“The Liberal Democrats say they have no alternative because they can’t afford to retain weekly waste collections. This hasn’t stopped them retaining elections three years out of four or finding money for expensive consultants to write HR policies.”
Cllr Jorgensen added: “This move to a less frequent service is going to cost the council significantly more to begin with than the current weekly waste collection.
“It is very difficult to see how they will make £700,000 of savings per year when the cost of the wheelie bins is considered.”
Feedback from the consultation will now be reviewed and used to form a new waste strategy that will go before the council’s decision making executive committee in February next year.
