Veolia has extended its waste and recycling contract with Wyre council – building on a contract initially signed in 2012.
Wyre council serves a population of over 100,000 in the area north of Blackpool, covering around 49,000 properties.
In a statement the council said it had ‘fully evaluated its options for waste collection and along with some service delivery changes starting next year, this [renewal] has been identified as the best value approach’.
The council is planning changes to the service which will see the end of the current box recycling system for glass, to be replaced by wheeled bins for each household providing increased capacity. Changes are expected to be rolled out from spring 2020.
Recycling will continue to be collected every fortnight alternating between the blue paper and card bin, and the new glass, cans and plastic bottles bin.
Wyre is also planning to invest in a fleet of new vehicles.
Councillor Simon Bridge, portfolio holder for street scene, parks and open spaces at Wyre council commented: “Over the last eight years Veolia has delivered a quality service for us and the residents of Wyre, which has allowed us to make considerable savings. We are aware that waste collection is a key service to all residents and we strive to maintain high standards whilst meeting legislative demands.”
Philip Gilmour, regional director, Veolia UK & Ireland commented: “We are delighted to be extending our close-working relationship and look forward to continuing and improving the service delivery to the local community.”
Waltham Forest
In north London, Urbaser has renewed its contract for neighbourhood services including street cleansing, and grounds maintenance with Waltham Forest council – and is taking over waste collections on behalf of the borough from Kier.
The contract has been awarded over a period of eight years, with the option to renew for a further eight years. Waltham Forest is home to an estimated 271,200 residents and 104,000 households.
The combined contract is worth approximately £12.8m per annum over the eight-year period.
“We know from residents that reliable waste and recycling collections are really important to them, we believe this contract will maintain the levels of reliability that our residents have been accustomed too.”
Cllr Clyde Loakes
Waltham Forest council
Cllr Clyde Loakes, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for the Environment, said: “We know from residents that reliable waste and recycling collections are really important to them, we believe this contract will maintain the levels of reliability that our residents have been accustomed too.”
Javier Peiro, managing director, Urbaser Ltd, said: “We are thrilled to retain our existing service provision with the London borough of Waltham Forest, and are delighted to build on our excellent relationship by now also providing waste & recycling collections on behalf of the council. We already have six years’ experience working within the Borough and we are committed to creating a cleaner, greener community.”
Changes will also be introduced to Waltham Forest’s collection service, which includes collections of textiles, household batteries, and small electrical goods. These new items will be collected from spring 2020.
From March 2020, Urbaser plan to introduce new collection vehicles and work over a longer day, the council said.
[Amended 22/03/2019: Kier previously carried out waste collections in Waltham Forest]
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