Food caddies

A number of folk have contacted us about food caddies – either because they have been missed or because they were not put back in the right place.

A council officer has helpfully sent us this reply:

The crews are aware that throwing caddies is not acceptable, I am pretty sure this is not happening, however, caddies are left in the front of properties and the crews have to be static whilst decanting from the caddy to the slave container. We will have problems with wind and sometimes the caddies are being blown after collection. If there are any individual instances that I can address I will be more than happy to make a visit to identify and rectify issues raised.

Please let us know if this is a problem for you, and we will pass on details.

New Van Trailer e-permit scheme at County Recycling Centres

 

recyclingrubble350x220

A van and trailer permit scheme was introduced at Oxfordshire’s Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRC) in November 2010 to reduce the amount of trade waste that was being deposited illegally at Oxfordshire’s HWRCs. It was estimated that the illegal deposit of trade waste was costing Oxfordshire County Council over £250,000 every year in disposal costs.

Currently customers who want to visit the HWRCs with either a ‘commercial-type’ vehicle or a trailer between 1.8m (6 ft) and 3m (10 ft) long  apply for a paper permit. When the permitting scheme was reviewed in 2012 a recommendation to move towards a ‘paperless’ system was agreed. This system, known as the Van Trailer e-permit scheme, has become operational on 4th November 2014.

Key changes

  • Paper permits will no longer be issued or required.
  • Customers are able to check how many visits they have left online, by asking site staff or by contacting Waste Management Group.
  • Permits will be automatically renewed after 12 months and are reset with 12 visits – customers will no longer need to contact Waste Management Group to renew their permits.
  • Permits automatically expire if they have not been used for 24 months – customers will receive a notification prior to the expiry of the permit.

If you have any questions about the scheme, please contact County Cllr Roz Smith

Rubbish collection team wins national award

We are pleased that Oxford City Council’s Recycling and Waste Team has won a national award for its improving performance.  We have had significantly fewer complaints this past year and those we have reported have been dealt with much more speedily.

Oxford City Council has won the prestigious Association of Public Sector Excellence (APSE) for Most Improved Performer in the Refuse Collection category

APSE performance networks is the UK’s largest voluntary data benchmarking service for local authorities sharing information on cost, quality and customer satisfaction across local council frontline services. The data is independently validated and used by councils across the UK to drive forward improvements in local public services.

 

Bins on pavements

bin  Our Community Response Officer Anton has done a sterling job today. He and his colleague Maria from the environmental enforcement team have completed a bin survey in New High Street. They identified a number of properties where owners needed to move bins off the highway, they gave out information to residents and have ensured that people have the right type of bin. Some houses have no frontage and benefit from a lilac plastic sack collection rather than having a big bin to wheel through the house.

Would you benefit from using lilac sacks?

Do you have any questions about collection days?

Do you live in a street which would benefit from this sort of audit?

If so, please do get in touch with either David or Ruth

Recycling team train up student wardens

Students from Oxford Brookes University have been visited by the City’s Recycling team, with the support of Oxford Brookes Student Community Wardens, to discuss recycling and waste issues in the city.

Training sessions were run by the Recycling team, resulting in 12 Student Community Wardens being prepared to answer any questions students might have on the door step.

Over 2000 student properties were visited to educate students about what they can recycle and what to place in each bin

Lib Dem success: flats get recycling boost

Following lobbying from the City Lib Dem Group, officers have decided that tenants in flats can now have a bin or an eco-sack as long as they do the following:

–          Purchase a bin for a yearly subscription charge of £35 or Eco Sacks for £25/£35 depending on how many they would like.

–          Take responsibility for the bin

–          Present garden waste on the same day as their recycling by 7am.

–          Place the bin or eco-sack at the kerbside

The property will need to be on the Council’s round sheets. Please email recycling@oxford.gov.uk if you live in a flat and want to register for this service.  And do contact us if there are any problems…

Advice to residents waiting for new bins

The City Council has been swamped with requests for brown bins or the new bags and demand had outstripped supply.

Officers advise that

We now have bins back in stock and delivering with upto four crews instead of the one. All should have their new bin within 10 working days of ordering by the end of the month. In the meantime crews will empty the hessian bags until the residents new bin arrives until the end of the month when normal delivery times will be being met (10 WORKING days from clearance of payment)

Garden waste subscription service

Oxford City Council is introducing the chargeable service in May which will replace the current green hessian sacks.

Residents will be able to choose the size of their brown wheelie bin or opt for biodegradable eco sacks as an alternative or to complement the bin.

The service will cost £35 a year for the brown wheelie bin.  Eco Sacks come in packs of 10 for £25 or 20 for £35.

Residents can keep their hessian sacks to use in the garden, or elsewhere. But these won’t be emptied after the end of April. The new scheme is entirely voluntary.

A card will be placed on people’s bins within the city in the next two weeks to inform them of the change.
If you would like more information about how to deal with recycling and waste click here, email recycling@oxford.gov.uk or telephone 01865 248911.

These changes were voted through as part of the Labour budget in February