PROPOSED changes to how Leicester’s household waste and recycling will be collected in the future have been outlined by the city council.
Leicester City Council is planning to introduce major changes and improvements to its recycling and waste collection over the next three years.
The first change – required under new legislation – will be the introduction of weekly food waste collections. The Government is making it a legal requirement for all councils to do this as part of its Simpler Recycling waste reforms.
In Leicester, this will mean that all homes will be provided with an indoor kitchen caddy to collect food waste, and a separate outdoor food waste bin. This will be smaller than the current black wheelie bins and is intended to be put out for collection every week.
Final proposals for the roll out of the new weekly food waste collection service in Leicester are still to be determined.
Alongside changes required as part of the new national waste reforms, the city is proposing local changes to the way it collects wheelie bin waste and mixed recycling.
Leicester City Council’s existing waste and recycling contract is due to come to an end in May 2028 and the process of tendering for a new citywide waste collection contractor needs to get underway.
The city council is proposing to collect non-recyclable wheelie bin waste and household recycling on alternate weeks. For most homes in the city, the existing orange bag system will be replaced by a single blue wheelie bin for mixed recycling.
Specific arrangements for flats, where communal waste collection points are in place, will be retained.
On average, food waste currently accounts for around 40 per cent of wheelie bin waste in Leicester. As a result of the new weekly food waste collections, the amount of waste being put into black bins will be reduced significantly, and bins are likely to be less smelly. This means that the black bins won’t need to be emptied as regularly.
The introduction of blue bins for recycling will help make it easier for households to store mixed recyclables like glass, plastic, tins, cardboard and paper while reducing mess on the streets and removing the need to reorder bags.
With the introduction of the new weekly food waste collection, this will mean that households continue to receive two waste collections per week.
It is proposed that the fortnightly garden waste collection service for subscribers, which runs between March and November, will continue without change.
Deputy city mayor Cllr Elly Cutkelvin, who leads on housing, economy and neighbourhoods, said: “Like all councils, we’re having to make big changes to how our waste and recycling services will work in future as we respond to new national legislation.
“The Government has introduced new rules designed to increase national recycling rates. This includes the requirement to introduce new weekly food waste collections from next year for all councils.
“This mean new bins for households to separate their food waste and will help significantly reduce the amount of waste going into black bins – by almost half.
“As we respond to these changes, it is vital that we keep our bin collections and recycling services practical and cost effective while ensuring that we can all do our bit to recycle more.
“What we’re proposing will mean that residents won’t lose the capacity or convenience that they have now and will continue to receive two waste collections every week. The changes will also be introduced over the next three years giving people plenty of time to adapt.
“It will also bring us more in line with waste collection services in neighbouring authorities and other similar cities and help to provide simpler recycling for everyone.”
Leicester City Council is set to receive additional government funding from the Department of Environment, Farming and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) of over £2.2 million to help set up the new weekly food waste collection service. Annual funding will also be provided by DEFRA to help meet the running costs of the new service.
It is anticipated that the revised waste collection services will help reduce carbon emissions by around 5,000 tonnes per year.
The proposed changes follow a detailed public consultation with saw more than 5,000 people taking part.
The proposals were presented to the council’s culture and neighbourhoods service scrutiny commission at a special meeting on Thursday 7 August.
A formal decision is expected to be taken on the proposed changes later this month.