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# Residents were failed during roll-out of new recycling collections across Lichfield and Burntwood, meeting told
- URL: https://lichfieldlive.co.uk/residents-were-failed-during-roll-out-of-new-recycling-collections-across-lichfield-and-burntwood-meeting-told/
- Published: 2022-11-18T10:40:34.000Z
- Updated: 2022-11-18T10:40:45.000Z
- Description: Residents across Lichfield and Burntwood were failed during the roll-out of a new recycling system, a cabinet member has admitted.
- Author: Lichfield Live
- Tags: Politics, News

Residents across Lichfield and Burntwood were failed during the roll-out of a new recycling system, a cabinet member has admitted.

The introduction of the dual stream recycling system – which sees card and paper separated out into a bag – was dogged with issues when it was introduced earlier this year.

Delays in delivering the new blue bags, inconsistencies with their sizing and missed collections were among the problems encountered, a report to a meeting of Lichfield District Council’s overview and scrutiny committee said.

Cllr Liz Little, cabinet member for waste and recycling, told the meeting there was a significant amount of work to be done to ensure that the festive period does not cause similar issues as recycling volumes rise.

> “Christmas is going to be a challenge. We’re planning it as best as we can, but we know there’ll be higher volumes of recycling, we’re losing a day due to the Bank Holiday and we know there will be more card.  
>  
> “We are putting extra trucks on to follow the bin wagon around to pick up excess so we don’t fill up the twin pack as quick as it would normally.  
>  
> “The communications will go out to residents to help ensure we don’t have a repeat. Once we’re out of Christmas we’ll get the recycling officers back out as we do recognise we have failed our residents.  
>  
> “We need to get the service back to that gold standard we had before – we’ve got to get the public back on side.”  
>  
> Cllr Liz Little, Lichfield District Council

Labour’s Cllr Diane Evans told the meeting the issues with the rollout had caused residents to be “very suspicious” about recycling.

> “A lot of damage has been done with the public – the communication was dire really.  
>  
> “It’s made people very suspicious and not very complimentary about the system. How are we going to overcome the suspicion the public have got at the moment?  
>  
> “People are either giving up or are just filling their black bins with contents that could and should be recycled.  
>  
> “We must educate the public properly – and there are further things that are going to happen with food waste. We must ensure this time that the proper information is given to people so they totally understand.  
>  
> “It’s vitally important the public are kept properly informed.”  
>  
> Cllr Diane Evans, Lichfield District Council

## “A verbal reassurance”

The committee also saw questions asked of the previous cabinet member who oversaw the rollout.

Cllr Dave Roberston said he had received assurances from Cllr Ashley Yeates that work to establish recycling volumes had been carried out – but said the report appeared to contradict that.

> “At a meeting on 17th March, there was a discussion where I spoke to the then cabinet member and asked if we’d done the work to make sure volume of the waste was one third paper and two thirds hard stuff, because we’re aware we have the tonnage figures but I did ask if we’d done necessary work on volume.  
>  
> “I was given a verbal assurance by that cabinet member in that meeting that the work had been done. But this report talks about how modelling would have helped the rollout and makes reference to the fact the volume of cardboard and plastic and glass isn’t automatically one third and two thirds.  
>  
> “It’s concerning to me this was raised by this committee and the cabinet member said it had been done, yet references in this report suggest this hadn’t been done.  
>  
> “Is there something that can be taken away in terms of ensuring the cabinet understand the relationship with overview and scrutiny?”  
>  
> Cllr Dave Robertson, Lichfield District Council

Cllr Doug Pullen, leader of the council, replied:

> “What Cllr Robertson referenced isn’t minuted so everyone will have to deduce their own view of whether or not that was said.  
>  
> “But in terms of ensuring cabinet are having frank and honest conversations I’m convinced they are.”  
>  
> Cllr Doug Pullen, Lichfield District Council