Bradford Council to discuss closure of three household recycling centres

The local authority’s executive committee will meet on Thursday 11th of January to discuss budget proposals for the coming financial year 2024-2025.

In order to save £40m over the next three years it will discuss a range of options, including the closure of almost half of its eight HWRCs.

If the proposals go ahead the HWRCs tipped for closure are in Ford Hill (Queensbury), Sugden End (Cross Roads) and Golden Butts (Ilkley).

Local opposition

According to reports in the Telegraph and Argus local councillors for the wards threatened with the closures strongly oppose the move, fearing it will directly lead to more fly-tipping.

Councillor Rebecca Poulsen (Cons, Worth Valley) said: “The Council is closing all the tips in the outlying areas.

“This is going to have a knock-on effect. They’re not encouraging people to do the right thing when they can go to lay-by and dump it there.”

Other measures include the closure of a children’s outdoor centre, cuts to libraries and leisure centres, and increasing council tax by 2.99% and other charges and fees across the council to help make up the shortfall.

The council says it has been put in an impossible situation by the long term effects of government austerity and higher costs and higher demand to provide children’s services and adult social care, which they are legally obligated to provide.

Cllr Susan Hinchcliffe, leader of Bradford coucncil, said:  “No council should be having to choose between funding services for communities and neighbourhoods, and funding services for vulnerable children and adults, but that is the situation we find ourselves in.

“The demand for, and cost of, providing residential placements and home to school transport is unsustainable for many councils on top of the effects of inflation and reductions in central government funding since 2011.

“I am asking government to fix the dysfunctional children’s social care market and fund local services effectively so that we can continue building a future that enables everyone in the Bradford district to make the best of opportunities available to them here.”

Continued pressures

It’s a similar story across the UK. Since 2011 Bradford council has had to find over £350m in cuts and savings due to national austerity measures introduced by the then chancellor George Osbourne.

Even with the continue pressures of higher inflation and energy prices councils have a statutory obligation to return a balanced budget every year despite dwindling government funding.

While some local authorities have managed to weather the storm, several have declared bankruptcy over the last year, most notably Birmingham city council.

The Local Government Authority has warned that councils face an overall funding gap over the next two years of £4bn.

But with no more money promised to fill the funding shortages in the autumn statement it says further and deeper cuts would be required.

This has led to nearly one if five council leaders in England saying they are likely to declare bankruptcy in this year or next.