New household waste recycling centre contract

Cheshire East Council has awarded a new contract for the running of the borough's household waste recycling centres – with cost savings, site upgrades and community benefits all to be delivered.

The contract with FCC Environment will run from this September for an initial seven year-period.

As well as saving the council money this year and in future years, the contract will see significant investment made in site upgrades, including new cabins, better signage, fencing, and surface repairs. The Macclesfield site will also get drainage and access improvements.

New features like number plate recognition and a 'meet and greet system' will ensure fair use and that sites are being maintained for Cheshire East residents only. Residents will also now be able to donate medical and IT equipment at their local site.

FCC Environmentwill support the local community by:

• Creating jobs and apprenticeships
• Giving 10,000 each year to local projects
• Helping charities with reuse schemes
• Offering volunteering and school visits to promote recycling

Even wildlife will benefit – with insect hotels being added to each site to boost biodiversity.

Supporting the council's carbon neutral 2045 target for the borough, FCC Environment has also made a commitment to reduce carbon emissions and work towards becoming net zero during the lifetime of the contract.

The booking system that is in place for visiting household waste recycling centres (HWRCs) during weekends and Bank Holidays will remain in place.

As part of the wider HWRC service, from 1 September, the mobile HWRC will be expanded to cover more areas where residents are either not within a 20-minute drive time of a HWRC site or are in an area where data indicates that incidents of fly tipping are at an increased level.

This will ensure that residents living in more rural areas can access an adequate level of service through the mobile HWRC.

From September, the mobile HWRC will also be available for four hours during each visit, instead of the current two.

Mobile HWRC for Audlem

The exact locations of where the mobile HWRC will operate is still to be finalised, but Audlem is among the areas it will cover.