Litter bin closure plans set aside to seek alternatives

Plans to save taxpayers’ money and protect essential public services by removing 150 public litter bins have been put on hold while Wokingham Borough Council explores other ways of making these much-needed savings.

At a meeting of its decision-making executive yesterday (Thursday, 26 October), the council agreed not to go ahead with the proposed reductions following feedback from a recent public consultation.

The responses were analysed earlier this month by one of the council’s overview and scrutiny committees, which advised against going ahead with the idea.

Instead, the executive accepted the committee’s recommendation to set up a task and finish group to look at other ways of saving money within the litter bin service.

Members were presented with a report on the committee’s findings and their questions were answered by Cllr Chris Johnson, chair of the council’s community and corporate overview and scrutiny committee.

Savings must be found somehow

The council is facing unprecedented financial pressures from a “triple threat” of high inflation, which is driving all its costs up, combined with a long track record of underfunding from the Government and rising demand for many of its services.

There is a growing need for adults’ and children’s social care, particularly for older people or pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), and the council must prioritise its increasingly limited resources on those who depend on it the most.

The Executive also approved several other cost-saving measures, which were proposed at the same time as the litter bin changes and these will be going ahead.

This includes changes in the frequency of street sweeping, cleaning of areas around bottle banks and weed spraying which, along with savings yet to be identified in litter bins, should save taxpayers about £600,000 over three years.

The executive also agreed to save £100,000 a year by reducing grass cutting in public areas from six annual cuts to four, except for play parks and other amenity areas. Grass verges that affect drivers’ view of the road at junctions would keep to the current schedule for safety reasons.

Listening to you as much as we can

Cllr Stephen Conway, the leader of Wokingham Borough Council, said: “I would like to thank all our residents who took part in the consultation for their helpful comments, and our scrutiny committee for its constructive recommendations.

“This process has allowed us to find a way forward which responds to residents’ concerns about the loss of bins but also gives us the freedom to find creative ways of reducing the cost of the public litter bin service.

“We will continue to be open and transparent as this progresses and will make further announcements as soon as there’s any more news to share.”

The council needs to save £12million this year and is looking to make a range of savings that will continue to prioritise people above all else.

About 60p in every pound it collects in council tax is spent on some form of social care, while almost four-fifths of its annual revenue budget – or running costs – is spent on this and other statutory services like maintaining roads and highways or collecting waste.