New weekly food waste collection and a paid for garden waste service coming to High Peak

From April residents will be asked to separate their food waste from garden waste due to changes in legislation requiring all councils to provide a weekly food waste collection service.

High Peak Borough Council currently collects food and garden waste together but will need to make operational changes to comply with the new law which will add cost and complexity to the service.

Executive Councillor for Climate Change and Environment, Jean Todd, said: “We’re working with our partners at Alliance Environmental Services to get ready for the big changes to collections that will start next spring.

“Food waste will be collected every week and we’ll be providing households with a caddy to make it easier for everyone to separate any food waste from other organic waste.” Other changes include a paid for garden waste collection service but this will be opt in.

Councillor Todd said: “We’ll also be asking people who want the Council to continue to collect their garden waste to opt-in to fortnightly collections for a small annual fee – a similar arrangement to that already in place at the majority of councils across the country.

“It’s a voluntary scheme and those people who don’t have gardens, and those who choose not to join, won’t be affected.”

The collection of garden waste is a discretionary service, says the council and it has agreed to introduce an optional charge for collecting garden waste at the same time as the free weekly food waste collections begin.

More than 80 per cent of councils across the country already charge for this service.

The scheme will cost £46 – less than the average cost in the East Midlands of almost £49.

Residents who choose not to join the subscription service will be able to take their garden waste to the tips in Buxton and Glossop or take advantage of the subsidised home compost bin offer the Council will be providing before the changes are introduced.

The council is now inviting residents to have their say on these changes and a survey will be running until Thursday November, 20.

To complete the survey visit High Peak Borough Council's website