Barnsley Council agrees to scrap £31 fee for replacement recycling bins

The decision was made at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, May 28, and means that residents will be able to request new or replacement bins free of charge, in a bid to remove financial barriers to recycling.

The council will allocate £500,000 in capital funding to support the initiative, which is expected to benefit up to 20,000 households during the next financial year. The policy change is also expected to reduce complaints related to bins and increase household recycling rates across Barnsley.

In addition to the bin replacement scheme, the council’s cabinet also approved £1.8 million in revenue funding to continue its waste safety and quality programme, first introduced in 2024. The initiative focuses on improving safety for refuse workers, with waste collection recognised as one of the most dangerous jobs in the UK.

Planned improvements include investment in in-cab vehicle technology, enhanced crew training, and additional seasonal staffing to manage high-demand periods. These measures aim to reduce missed collections and improve service resilience, especially during winter months.

Over the 2024/25 winter period, more than 100,000 collections were missed due to severe snow and ice, highlighting the need for a more adaptable and robust system.

Council leaders said the combined investments will help deliver a fairer, safer, and more efficient waste service for residents.

Councillor Kevin Osborne, cabinet support member for environment and highways, said: “The service wholeheartedly acknowledges that the disruption to collections and inconvenience to residents and members throughout the year has been significant and does fall short of the quality of service that we endeavor to deliver, first because of the severe weather in January, and latterly, as a result of the changes to services we have been making, we have experienced ongoing disruption to scheduled collections.

“I am pleased to report to cabinet that over 95 per cent of collections are now being made on the scheduled day, notwithstanding the daily operational challenges that every waste services face, such as blocked access by parked cars, vehicle breakdowns and staff availability. The challenge now is how to maintain our service levels and safety standards.

“The waste safety and quality program launched on the fourth of December 2024. This is a major change program, the largest we’ve seen in the service for decades. Why? Because the waste sector is the fourth most dangerous industry in the United Kingdom. Almost twice as many people tragically lose their lives in the waste industry, when compared, let’s say, to construction industry.

“Our program is there to ensure that every member of staff go home to their families at the end of every day, and that the public are kept safe around the collection crews as they work.

“Of course, as with any large scale change program with new working practices, there is bound to be an impact on productivity. That is no less the case with this program, our frontline management are working with collection crews to address any issues that do arise and ensure that the safety and quality program is fully embedded.”