Single bin recycling plan on hold

PLANS to collect all household recycling in one wheelie bin are set to be put on hold by Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council to next summer.

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Recycling litter bin plan axed

RECYCLING bins will not be installed throughout borough streets after a “disappointing” second trial.

            

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Single bin plan for recycling

HOUSEHOLD recycling will go in one bin under new plans.

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Council savings: tip evening opening to end

EVENING opening at Solihull's only household waste recycling centre is to be axed to save cash.

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Residents can put out extra waste over Xmas

HOUSEHOLDERS will be able to put out bags of rubbish along recycling boxes after Christmas during a “side waste amnesty”

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Changes to "confusing" recycling collections

MOST recycling will be collected once a fortnight under plans to simplify Solihull’s “confusing” waste collection service.

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Snow has used 40% of grit

ABOUT 40 per cent of grit stocks have been used, council bosses said today.

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Bin collections to resume

WASTE will be collected from tomorrow after snow led to the cancellation of bin rounds.

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Solihull recycling more

SOLIHULL’S household recycling rate leapt from 33 per cent to 40 per cent last year, new figures show.

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Christmas bin collection dates for Solihull

INFORMATION on bin collections in Solihull over Christmas is now available. Click here to read.

Bin complaints soar

THE firm which collects Solihull’s bins has been told by council chiefs that its word will no longer be taken at face value after complaints rocketed.

Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council said Enterprise, which it contracts to collect household waste, must provide information on how it has dealt with complaints.

Waste and recycling complaints are higher than in 2009 every month since April and rose from 40 in July 2009 to 130 the same month the following year.

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Axed incinerator plan cost £400k

A LONG-MOOTED plan to replace Solihull’s incinerator has been scrapped – after £400,000 was spent planning it by the council.

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Rubbish out of bin won't be collected, council says

RESIDENTS will not be able to leave rubbish outside of their bin for collection from May 31.

Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council said the move would ‘encourage everyone to recycle even more’.

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Residents will have to pay for replacement bins

RESIDENTS will have pay up to £40 for replacement wheelie bins and recycling containers from today.

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£60 extra green bin plan approved

EXTRA charges for green waste collection have been approved by council chiefs.

Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council has backed offering an extra green bin for £60 a year collection costs for the first time. The bin would cost £40.

It will pick up extra green waste for £30 a year, from April.

Bulky waste collection charges will also rise from £10.66 to £15.

The move is part of drives by the cash-strapped council to cut costs and make cash.

The charges were approved by the council’s cabinet last week.

View the full charges here and The Silhillian’s stories on council savings here.

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Homes 'will recycle half of all waste'

HOUSEHOLDS in Solihull will recycle about half of all waste by 2042, it has been reported.

£60 for another bin plan

HOUSEHOLDERS could be offered an extra green bin and collections in the winter – but at a price.

In the second of a series of articles about proposed budget cuts at Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council, The Silhillian looks at the community services department.

Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council is considering introducing an extra bin for £60 a year. It hopes 200 homes would take up the offer, netting it £2,750 next year, 2010/11.

In a report it says “many residents claim that provision of one bin does not meet their needs, especially those residents with large gardens”.

And it could introduce a monthly green bin collection between December and March for £30.

A report says: “Residents who wished to participate in the scheme would be required to pay for the full 4 collections even if they intended to utilise just one or two.

“They would be asked to display a colour-coded sticker on their bin to demonstrate that they had paid the additional charge.”

It hopes 1,000 homes will take up the service and this will net the council £8,400 next year.

The council says there could be a "potential negative reaction to charging" as "some authorities provide at no cost".

The changes are one of many across all council services aimed at saving cash at the authority which, like other public bodies, faces a major cash squeeze. The council says it is amongst the lowest funded in England.

The department could also close the mobile library service..

The authority is in discussions with neighbouring Warwickshire County Council over the future of the service.

It would be scrapped at April 2011 at the earliest and the council said “implications need to be fully considered”.

Proposals for the 12 months from April also include reducing opening hours at seven libraries – including Knowle and Balsall Common – from 39 to 32 to save £95,000 next year.

Council papers says this “reflects the pattern of customer use and need which could be
achieved by planned approach to vacancy management”.

Other savings in the department for 2010/11 include:

• Removing some bedding plants and bedding areas. Saving: £22,000.
• Scrapping the schools library services, where schools buy books and activities from the council. It says use is declining and savings would come through not filling empty posts. Saving: £58,000.
• Charge for library “services and facilities currently provided free of charge”. No detail is given and any changes would be in 2011/12, not next year.
• Delay replacing recycling and litter bins. Saving: £30,000.
• Charging for detailed forestry advice, currently free, to make £15,750 next year.
• Removing half of parks changing rooms, from 2011/12 at the earliest. These could be saved by third parties, it says. Saving: £50,000.
• Hiring out Solihull Arts Complex more to make £10,000.
• Increasing collection costs for bulky waste (not including fridges and freezers) from £10.66 to £15. The council admits this could see an increase in fly-tipping.

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Bin collections returning

ALL waste and recycling should be collected in Solihull today, council bosses said – with the backlog cleared by next Friday.

Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council said today: “The intention [is] that all domestic waste and paper and card for the Friday collection is collected.”

Extra staff will be on hand today and next week, it said in a statement.

It said: “It is hoped that by the end of Friday 22 January, with reasonable weather conditions, all waste and recycling from the past two weeks will have been cleared.”

It said heavy rain will thaw snow but roads and pavements could still be icy as temperatures are hovering above zero.

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Council: project ads on us for cash

PROJECTING advertisements onto council buildings and sponsoring car parks are among savings being considered by bosses in a bid to close a financial black hole.

Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council is also considering sponsoring its buildings, trees and mobile libraries to plug a £13.7m gap. Such deals could net it a total £125,000.

The council – which has among the lowest council tax rates in England – hopes this will see its share of next year’s council tax bill increase by 2.9 per cent.

Possible savings affecting residents include:

• Removing the early council tax payment discount. This would have been 0.2 per cent next year. This would remove the “disadvantage to council tax payers who cannot afford early payment”.
• Charging people for advice on preparing planning applications.
• Increasing burial and cremation charges.
• Replacing illuminated road bollards with reflective strips.
• Raising the cost of a wedding licence for civil ceremonies.
• Increasing private citizenship ceremonies by a third to £75.
• A new ‘twilight’ service for weddings later in the day, costing £450.
• Charging for forestry advice.
• Introducing a standard charge for most pest control services.
• Charging for an additional green bin.

Possible savings affecting council and schools staff:

• Stopping workers having more than one computer. This currently applies to 470 council staff.
• Getting a better deal for 75 officers and councillors who have their broadband internet connection paid for by SMBC.
• Charging schools for criminal records bureau checks. They pay half at present.
• Removing a discount for paying school meals early.
• Increased use of second class post.
• Urging staff to reduce their hours.
• Stopping newspaper deliveries for staff.

The council said savings already found including using in-house legal service for employment advice rather than external solicitors. These cost up to £330 an hour and £65,000 annually compared to £64 in-house.

But a report says it is ‘regrettable’ the council is having to put aside £2,200 for investigations for the standards committee, which looks at complaints against councillors.

A total of 31 cases were referred to the committee this year and ‘several’ are being investigated.

Click here for details of the proposed savings (item 9).

The authority – which gets the lowest government grant per head of all metropolitan authorities – has already moved to cut music and social services schemes.

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Expect bin collection delays, council says

RESIDENTS can expect further disruptions to bin collections, Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council said today.

It said the snowy weather means a ‘restricted’ service will continue.

In a statement it said: “For domestic waste, where it is safe to do so the council will collect black wheelie bins and one full bag of additional side waste.

“Green recycling boxes – paper and card – and plastic will also be collected where it is safe to do so, as well as any excess paper, card or plastic that does not fit in the box.”

It says householders can take waste to recycling facilities.

The statement says: “We hope residents appreciate that for both waste and recycling collections, the resumption of normal service in the borough is hugely dependent on the prevailing weather conditions.”

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