Missing rubbish bins

Sat 23 Oct 2021, 10:10 (last edited on Sat 23 Oct 2021, 10:11)

I did not intend my comment to be read as a complaint about the services Ubico have provided during Covid. I have been really grateful that all bins have continued to be collected -- certainly not the case in all areas of England.

It was intended rather a comment on how out-of-touch the officers' report on the advantages of the new-style bins is. 

And since we haven't been consulted about how in practice we would benefit from the (very expensive) replacement of the bins -- and incidentally a loss of around 25% in the number of bins provided (without, it is claimed, an increase in overall littering) -- we need a chance to say how the services are experienced by those who don't live in town centres like Cheltenham where "smart" plastic bins might (or might not) be a useful additional service.

Sat 23 Oct 2021, 09:56

WODC do (or DID) respond to threats though.

Some years ago, I returned from work to find my garden literally *covered* in bin rubbish. And this was not the first time it had happened. So I was somewhat miffed.

I emailed WODC and informed them that I would be withholding any Council Tax payments unless and until the rubbish in my garden was cleared. Surprise surprise - when I returned from work the next day, my garden was spotless. AND I got an email from WODC informing me that rubbish collection costs were only a small amount of what we pay our Council Tax for, as if I could not work that out for myself! But the threat seems a useful "crowbar" if WODC fail you!

Maybe a similar threat regarding missing bins would work?!

Sat 23 Oct 2021, 09:33

Your comment about the state of the plastic bins is apposite, Stephen, as the link posted by Peter Kenrick informs us that the present metal rubbish bins are to be replaced by plastic bins as they last so much longer.

Plastic bins only last longer if they are treated with respect by the rubbish disposal teams! But this does not seem to be a priority ... missing and broken lids and splits in the sides are all too frequent. I suspect that in a few years it will be decided that metal would after all have been better (they look better, and are more stable in high winds as well). 

I also read that some of the bins are being trialled in Cheltenham to become "smart" so that they can signal to the waste disposal teams when they are full. Round here a "smart" bin would be able to signal to its owners where it had been deposited after emptying. I often have to set out on a bin hunt, and sometimes come across some of my neighbours doing the same.

Sat 23 Oct 2021, 07:29

Found 3 rubbish bins. Wychwood House (at the Enstone X Roads) has, over the past few weeks, accumulated 3 unwanted bins. As far as I can tell (because they always appear on a Tuesday), left by by the bin men. One looks as if it has been through the lorry's crushing mechanism; one without a lid and a big split in it and one simply without a lid. My pleading for them to be taken away falls on deaf WODC ears or rather unread WODC emails. 

Fri 22 Oct 2021, 12:37

Precisely, Charlie.

Fri 22 Oct 2021, 12:31

Just like they "consulted" us over the matter of the recycling bins, you mean?

Fri 22 Oct 2021, 12:12 (last edited on Fri 22 Oct 2021, 12:12)

As a District Council, WODC has a statutory duty to provide litter bins.

The Cabinet paper Peter has linked to states that town and parish councils will be consulted.  That has evidently not been the case (just as it wasn’t when they removed the recycling bring site).

We are aware of removed bins around the Spendlove car park; if any others are missing, please notify us here.

The Town Council has responded robustly to WODC; their claim to have consulted is evidently, er, a load of rubbish.  My view is that they be required to replace the bins, unless there is genuine consultation and a case for their removal can be made.  The Town Council already has to pay a significant amount of money on the precept for collection from newer bins including those by the Community Centre on Nine Acres. The WODC administration’s policy appears to be to charge us twice for litter collection, even though it is their statutory duty.

Fri 22 Oct 2021, 10:13

Agree, Damian. My comment here is that SOME dog owners wait until their poor animal is bursting for a ‘toilet’ and only then are they are taken out to do it on any patch well away from their front door.

I’ve never understood why we generally ‘as a nation of dog lovers’, don’t see the double standards going here. Bag it up in your own garden, I politely request. It is disgusting to see how much is left in open spaces, particularly where there are children playing.

Fri 22 Oct 2021, 09:47

A very strange plan indeed. Almost all of the public bins I pass in Charlbury are almost full or overflowing prior to collection. The dog waste bins similarly. Combining the two seems unsanitary and in haste. It will be interesting to see how this works out? Many people are unlikely to deposit an empty crisp packet or the like into an open bin packed tight and spilling over the brim with dog poop bags.

Thu 21 Oct 2021, 17:53

It now appears this is part of a "Litter Bin Placement and Renewal Programme" (thanks to Liz Leffman and Roger Clarke for following this up).  I have copied below text issued by WODC about this programme but the truth is that there has been no consultation or courtesy notification of…

Long post - click to read full text

Thu 21 Oct 2021, 17:45

That seems rather crazy. The amount of money saved on the collection must be tiny, as surely the rubbish collection vehicles must be in the vicinity anyway. 

It would be good to know if other bins have been removed. I thought we were supposed to be saving carbon and not making unnecessary journeys to the tip which is located such a long distance away. 

In addition, removing bins from the Spendlove car park is surely likely to increase litter from the various take-aways that are located there. I have noticed people picking litter up from the street and moving it to the bins in the Spendlove car park.

Perhaps we should ask the Town Council to request their return.

Speaking of tips, it is worth noticing that OCC will be shutting each of its tips for two days in November.

The closing dates are:

Alkerton, near Banbury: Tuesday 2 and Wednesday 3 November

Ardley, near Bicester: Thursday 4 and Friday 5 November

Dix Pit, Stanton Harcourt: Tuesday 23 and Wednesday 24 November

Drayton, near Abingdon: Tuesday 9 and Wednesday 10 November

Oakley Wood, near Wallingford: Tuesday 16 and Wednesday 17 November

Redbridge, Oxford: Thursday 18 and Friday 19 November

Stanford, near Farringdon: Thursday 11 and Friday 12 November.

Thu 21 Oct 2021, 16:44

If anybody notices some of the rubbish bins around the town are missing, it's not because they've been stolen. WODC has been removing them to save money on rubbish collection costs. A couple were removed from the Spendlove Centre Car Park this morning, and maybe some others too.