LARAC welcomes happy recycling poll

LARAC has welcomed a poll which named recycling collections as the most improved public service over the last five years, despite local government cuts according to the British public.

The survey, conducted by ICM on behalf of the BBC, assessed whether people think the quality of public services has been maintained, improved or made worse over the last five years.

It found that 48% (493) of the 1,031 people surveyed think that recycling collection services have improved over the last five years. Meanwhile, 37% (385) thought the standard of recycling collections were the same while 12% (124) said the service had got worse.

However, refuse collections fared slightly worse in the survey as only 29% of people (295) said they had got better while 45% (460) believed they had stayed the same. 23% (242) said they had got worse.

The results have been welcomed by the Local Authority Recycling Advisory Committee (LARAC) who said satisfaction levels have remained high despite a number of changes to waste and recycling services.

Joy Blizzard, LARAC chair, said: LARAC members have repeatedly demonstrated high public satisfaction levels with recycling services over the last few years. These have remained high despite numerous changes – AWC and food waste collections being just two examples.

I’m pleased to see the hard work of council recycling officers recognised in the latest survey although some of the on-going financial pressures are not necessarily being felt yet -but they are likely to be in the future.

Satisfied

The Local Government Association added that it is pleasing that the public remain satisfied with the service and highlighted ways councils could stimulate growth.

An LGA spokesperson said: Councils know the importance of waste collection to their communities and it is pleasing that this poll confirms that the vast majority of people remain satisfied with their recycling and refuse collection services. Household recycling has more than doubled to 43 per cent in the last decade due to councils becoming better and more efficient at collecting and disposing of waste and recycling.

“This has helped the environment and saved council taxpayers millions of pounds in landfill taxes. But were only halfway through the cuts and a key decision on the level of landfill tax has yet to be made that could cost tax payers hundreds of millions of pounds.

The spokesperson added: By freezing landfill tax and reinvesting the money in forward thinking waste and recycling projects, local government could stimulate growth, create jobs and boost an important revenue stream. This would help limit the impact of budget cuts and help us continue to deliver the services our residents rely on, from protecting children, fixing roads and caring for the elderly.

Parks and open spaces also performed well on the survey as 34% of people said the service has improved alongside GP surgeries which scored 29% for improvement. At the bottom of the scale was road maintenance, care for the elderly and meals on wheels with 11%, 11% and 4% of people saying they improved.