Calderdale Council's rubbish issues mount up

Residents in Calderdale have not had their recycling and refuse collected for weeks since the introduction of the new system .

SUEZ and Calderdale Council are investigating any repeated missed collections so that action can be taken in time for each household’s next scheduled collection.

Whilst SUEZ has a fleet of bespoke vehicles built specifically for the Calderdale contract, able to access all types of properties in the borough, there have been a small number of properties that have experienced delays due to the wrong size of vehicle being scheduled to service their street.

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However, the Calderdale Conservative group has called for assurances from the Council that arrangements are being put in place to address the various problems that residents are experiencing following the start of the new waste collection and recycling contract.

Conservative Group leader Coun Scott Benton said “Whilst the Council are working to try and address the situation, we are aware of some streets, such as Holly Bank in Elland, that haven’t had a collection of any kind for over four weeks now and so some residents are understandably getting very frustrated.

“Furthermore, many residents have been unable to get through to the Council’s Customer First Contact Centre to report these problems and so it has left them feeling angry and helpless’.

‘The Conservative Group supports the new waste collection contract and we think that this will provide welcome improvements in the long-term but we are seeking immediate assurances from the Council that arrangements are being put in place to address the current problems that the service is experiencing.”

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The service was introduced this month to 94,000 households in Calderdale which was supposed to enable residents to recycle more.

Coun Barry Collins, the Council’s Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Economic Development, said: “We know that there have been initial delays in some areas.

“We apologise to the residents affected and assure them that the issues are temporary, and over the next few weeks we hope to eliminate any disruptions completely.

“Extra crews are working evenings and weekends to ensure that materials are cleared, and we have additional support in our contact centre to deal with enquiries.”