New bin collection rota starts today

New fortnightly black bin and weekly food waste rota kicks in today (Monday)

TODAY (Monday) marks the end of weekly black bin collections across West Berkshire as a new fortnightly rota is begun.

Kitchen caddies have been delivered to homes across the district over the last month for residents to put food waste inside.

The food waste bags are to be placed inside the black bins one week, which will go to landfill, and in green bins the next week, which will be sent to the new household waste recycling facility in Padworth.

For those with a communal bin store area the service will not change until 2012.

The move has sparked controversy as ten days after the council made the announcement the Government Communities Secretary Eric Pickles pledged £250 million to restore weekly black bin collections, which he called "a basic human right".

The leader of West Berkshire Council, Graham Jones (Con, Lambourn), said no decision to either accept or turn down any money from the Government had been made as yet no money has been offered.

"We do not know the criteria on which financial support would be made available," he said. "From comments Eric Pickles has made the money might only be available for weekly collections of food waste as we are maintaining a weekly collection of food waste as such West Berkshire may well not qualify.

"We are in regular contact with the DCLG to ascertain the criteria and will make a judgement when this is announced."

To find out the date of your next collection or to check which week your garden and food waste will be collected, log on to the West Berkshire Council website.

Have you been separating your food waste ready for the new collection rota? Email your thoughts to mark.taylor@newburynews.co.uk.