Garden waste collection in Basingstoke and Deane to be suspended again

GARDEN waste collections in Basingstoke and Deane are being suspended again from August 23.

The decision is being taken by the borough council due to the number of waste crew members needing to self-isolate and a national shortage of HGV drivers.

The council says the decision needs to be made to protect its core household waste, recycling and clinical/healthcare waste collections after many bin crews were required to go out one person down.

It hopes to resume the service from Monday, September 6.

The fortnightly subscription service costs residents £60, with a one-off brown bin cost of £35.

The council said on its website: “We hope to be able to resume the garden waste service from Monday 6 September, but this will depend on having enough staff available to deliver the service.

“We will be extending garden waste subscriptions to make up for any missed collections during this period.

“We are encouraging residents to renew their subscription as normal to ensure there is no break in service once collections resume.

“The extension will be added to the end of their current subscription period or, if they renew during the suspension, the end of their next subscription.

“To prioritise resources to current customers signed up to the service when it resumes, we are not signing up new customers at this time.

“We apologise for the inconvenience that will be caused, but we hope residents understand why we have had to take this step, as have other councils, to ensure waste and recycling services are maintained and our frontline staff are protected and doing all they can to reduce the spread of the virus.

“This is a national issue with many local authorities having to prioritise waste and recycling services over other collections.

“Letters have been sent out to all residents subscribed to this service with further information, and any updates will be made available on our social media channels and on our website.”