Garden waste collection charge rising by £6

The early bird discount has also been axed

The cost of having your garden waste collected by Cherwell District Council is set to rise by £6 next year.   The 14% increase was approved by the Council’s Executive Committee on Monday evening.

Councillors also agreed to remove the early bird discount which gave people the chance to reduce their bill by 10 percent.   For those who took advantage of that saving last year the increase is £8 per bin.

In the Cherwell District 57% of households use the garden waste collection service.   The price increase is likely to bring in an extra £190,000 of revenue.

The Council says their service is well priced in comparison to other local councils.   This year Oxford City charged £75 for its garden waste collection. South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse was slightly lower with an annual fee of £60.   In Stratford upon Avon this year’s charge was similar to Cherwell at £44, with West Oxfordshire levying a marginally higher £45 fee.

A report to Councillors said: “The challenge in 2024/25 is to set a price level which accounts for higher fuel prices and raised labour costs but also makes the offer still attractive to residents.”

Councillor Andrew McHugh is the Portfolio Holder for Cleaner and Greener Communities.   He said the increase was down to external factors beyond the Council’s control.

He said: “It gives me no joy to propose this increase, but we are all well aware of the high rates of inflation, particularly in fuel costs that we have experienced over the last 18 months, due in large part to Putin’s weaponization of energy as part of his illegal war in Ukraine and his objective to undermine Western democracy.”

Charges for collecting garden waste were introduced in 2022, with the fee initially set at £40.   Last year the Council increased the charge to £43.

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Published: 08/11/2023 12:16pm by Banbury FM Newsteam

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