Borough bin review to maximise efficiency and prioritise heavily used areas
Published: Tuesday, 3 December 2024
Around 25 per cent of litter and dog waste bins in Oadby & Wigston will be removed to maximise efficiency and ensure the most-used in the borough can be prioritised and emptied regularly.
Oadby & Wigston Borough Council (OWBC) has undertaken the review to ensure residents can receive the best possible service and ensure value for money.
The borough currently has 500 bins which require 1,350 individual visits per week, which has become increasingly unsustainable over the last decade, primarily due to financial pressures and reduced staffing.
A full assessment has taken place, which includes identifying damaged bins, bins that are very rarely used and areas where there are multiple waste and/or dog bins within a matter of yards of each other.
Removing these bins will allow crews to far more efficiently get to all the remaining, well-used bins on a regular basis.
Bins that will continue to be prioritised include those:
- At bus stops
- Near shops likely to generate customer litter.
- On school routes
- Locations near benches
- Entrances and exits to parks
- Known dog-walking areas
- Places that attract large crowds.
Cllr Samia Haq, Leader of OWBC, said: “We are committed to spending money wisely and this is made all the more important by the severe financial pressure we, and other councils across the country, are currently under.
“Careful consideration has been given to the locations where bins will be removed. Routes will also become more efficient and the team will now have better capacity to monitor the areas where bins fill up regularly and make extra collections when needed.
“We're always looking for ways to improve our services and rather than spreading ourselves too thinly, this change will allow us to be more targeted and efficient in our litter bin collections, something that we know residents want from us.
“We will continue to monitor bin provision in the borough through seasonal assessments, taking into account our litter strategy, feedback we receive from the public and any litter issues that arise.”