'I thought it was acid,' says assaulted tip worker

Simon Collett says he feared being blinded during the incident at the Bodmin tip

A refuse worker who had a clear liquid thrown at him during an assault at a rubbish tip has shared his experience as part of a campaign to end violence and aggression towards staff.

Simon Collett was working at Bodmin Household Waste and Recycling Centre (HWRC) when he was assaulted last year.

The man who threw the liquid at Mr Collett admitted assault and agreed with police to complete an anger management course.

Suez - the company that operates the HWRCs for Cornwall Council - said there had been a 42% increase in verbal and physical assaults across the country in 2024, prompting them to launch a campaign called Refuse the Abuse.

Another worker at Connon Bridge Recycling Centre, in Liskeard, was threatened by a man who told him he would "have his throat ripped out".

'Changed me'

Mr Collett was working at the Bodmin HWRC when he challenged a customer he suspected was disposing of trade waste.

"He decided to assault me by throwing liquid at me. I thought it could be acid," he said.

"I checked my clothing to see if it was burning. Then I thought, 'am I going to be blind?'

"It changed me as a person. I'm not the same person I was since that cowardly, unprovoked attack.

Mr Collett says the assault has changed him as a person

"I still have flashbacks and it doesn't just affect me, it affects my family too.

"I'm a human being. Whatever happened doesn't deserve that level of aggression."

Talking about the national campaign, Suez chief executive, John Scanlon, said: "Millions of people use recycling centres every year - the overwhelming majority of these visitors are wonderful and the main reason many of our colleagues enjoy their front-facing roles.

"However, a very small minority of aggressive individuals have caused members of our team enormous stress and upset and we want to ensure this upward trend in verbal and physical assaults does not continue."

A short film has been made as part of the Suez campaign We Refuse Abuse, which will run through August

Suez has produced a short film showing CCTV footage of some of the abuse faced by tip workers across the country.

Councillor Loic Rich, cabinet member with responsibility for environment and climate change at Cornwall Council, said: "Thank you to these men for speaking out and sharing their experiences.

"No-one should be treated like this when simply doing their job.

"Any violence against our staff, or anyone employed by our contractors, will not be tolerated.

"Incidents like these are reported to the police and we will ban abusive or aggressive members of the public from our household waste and recycling centres."