Council scraps charge to replace recycling bins

Barnsley Council has approved the abolition of a £31 charge for replacement recycling bins.

The move is part of a wider £2.3m investment into modernising waste and recycling services across the borough.

The decision was made at a cabinet meeting on Tuesday and means that residents will be able to request new or replacement bins free of charge, in a bid to remove financial barriers to recycling.

The council will allocate £500,000 in capital funding to support the initiative, which is expected to benefit up to 20,000 households during the forthcoming financial year.

The policy change is also expected to reduce complaints related to waste bins and increase household recycling rates across Barnsley, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

In addition to the bin replacement scheme, the council's cabinet also approved £1.8 million in revenue funding to continue its waste safety and quality programme, first introduced in 2024.

Planned improvements include investment in in-cab vehicle technology, enhanced crew training, and additional seasonal staffing to manage high-demand periods.

These measures aim to reduce missed collections and improve service resilience, especially during winter months.

Over the 2024/25 winter period, more than 100,000 collections were missed due to severe snow and ice.

Councillor Kevin Osborne, cabinet support member for environment and highways, said: "The service wholeheartedly acknowledges that the disruption to collections and inconvenience to residents and members throughout the year has been significant and does fall short of the quality of service that we endeavour to deliver."

He added: "The challenge now is how to maintain our service levels and safety standards."

Osborne said that almost twice as many people lost their lives in the waste industry, when compared to the construction industry.

He added: "Our programme is there to ensure that every member of staff goes home to their families at the end of every day, and that the public are kept safe around the collection crews as they work.

"Of course, as with any large-scale change programme with new working practices, there is bound to be an impact on productivity.

"That is no less the case with this programme. Our frontline management are working with collection crews to address any issues that do arise and ensure that the safety-and-quality programme is fully embedded."

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