Missed bin collections spark rise in complaints received by welsh council

MISSED GARDEN WASTE COLLECTIONS - WHICH RESIDENTS HAVE TO PAY FOR - WAS ONE OF THE BIGGEST BUGBEARS 20:39, 13 Sep 2024 Vale of Glamorgan Council saw complaints increase sharply last year

with many of them coming as a result of missed garden waste collections which residents now have to pay for. A council report shows that complaints went up from 495 in 2022/23 to 737 in

2023/24. The report, which was presented to one of the council's scrutiny committees, also shows that 57% of complaints were resolved within the target timescales. This was up from

51.8% in the previous year. Speaking at a Vale of Glamorgan Council homes and safe communities meeting on Wednesday, September 11, the local authority's director of environment and

housing, Miles Punter, said the complaints were mainly directed at waste services. Mr Punter said: "Some of them are down to missed collections for our refuse service. READ MORE:

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continues below "Some of them are down to missed collections for the green waste service as well and I think you can't blame the public for complaining when their green waste

isn't being picked up when they are paying for it." Vale of Glamorgan Council stopped collecting garden waste for free in July 2023. For more news, sign up to our newsletter here.

They charged a single £20 fee for a fortnightly collection of up to eight bags of garden waste or a £30 fee for more than eight bags. The council currently charges either £36 per year for up

to eight bags per collection, or £54 per year for more than eight bags per collection. Mr Punter added: "Some of the issues in terms of waste collections are down to the fact that we

are trying to minimise the resources that we put on on a day to day basis in terms of the refuse service because our budgets are tight. We have breakdowns or we have vehicle issues or

staffing issues. We are a bit slower to respond than what we perhaps had been in previous years when finances have been better. Article continues below "We are working on that and one

of the ways we can deal with it is by properly publishing our service standards so that the expectations of the public match the ability of the service we are able to provide." Vale of

Glamorgan Council, like other councils across the country, are facing significant financial pressure due to a number of issues including rising costs and increased demand on services. The

council is currently expecting to face a budget gap of about £9m for 2025/26. This year, it has had to bridge a budget gap of more than £7m.