An announcement about which bids are to receive funding under the 250m Weekly Collection Support scheme is expected in the coming weeks after being pushed back from October.
The Department for Communities and Local Government said this week that there has been some slippage into early November despite originally planning an October announcement.
Some local authorities had feared that the silence from DCLG had suggested it might be shelving the scheme.
Responding to a recent query about the scheme, the department said: The Supporting Weekly Collections Prospectus suggested an October announcement and we have been working to that timetable. It seems there may now be a little slippage into early November but, either way, the announcement on successful bids will be made in the coming weeks.
The Department also referred to a recent answer to a parliamentary question from shadow environment minister Mary Creagh. Ms Creagh had asked which local authorities had submitted final bids to DCLG by the deadline of April 17.
In response, local government minister Brandon Lewis said the scheme had been oversubscribed and would make a statement in due course.
He commented: The Weekly Collections Support scheme fund is over subscribed and all 250 million will be fully allocated so millions of families will receive a weekly residual waste collection and recycling. The Department for Communities and Local Government is currently assessing the final bids we received requesting funding from the Weekly Collection Support scheme and Ministers will make a statement in due course.
Scheme
The Weekly Collection Support Scheme is a fund which makes up to 250million available to support local authorities in delivering better weekly collections of household waste and recycling.
Announced in September 2011 and launched in February 2012, the fund is open to bids from English local authorities that wish to introduce, retain or reinstate a weekly collection service.
DCLG provided feedback on 22 June to local authorities who submitted an outline bid. This feedback was designed to support local authorities as they developed and improved their bids in time for the final bid deadline of 17 August.
There are three criteria which each bid must satisfy in order to be considered successful. Each proposal must:
deliver a weekly collection service to residents for a minimum of five years
deliver value for money (in terms of cost effectiveness)
deliver environmental benefits
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