Residents start paying for green bin collections

Shropshire Council has started taking payments from residents who want to continue having their green waste collected.

In July the authority decided to charge £56 a year for the service, meaning people who chose not to pay would not get their green bins emptied from October.

The council said it could no longer afford to provide the service without an additional payment as it attempted to save £62.5m from its budget this financial year.

It had planned to start taking payments from August, but was delayed by a technical glitch.

Households which pay to use the service will receive a sticker to place on their bin, to show collection crews it can be emptied.

Food waste can no longer be placed in the bins, though, because councils are not allowed to charge for food waste collection.

Instead, the authority plans to introduce a weekly food waste collection service from 2026.

Ian Nellins, the councillor responsible for waste management, said: “We must make significant savings and our plans include difficult decisions."

He said 80% of English councils already charge for garden waste collections, adding he expected about half the homes in the county to sign up initially.

"We would like to think it would be in excess of 60 to 70 percent eventually," he said.

Residents who do not pay will have their first green bin of October emptied, but will also receive thereafter a notice to tell them it will be the last unless they pay.

General waste bins containing garden waste will not be emptied.

Neighbouring Telford and Wrekin Council has promised the service there will continue to be free.