New garden waste charge for Warwick district residents

Residents in Warwick district will have to pay £20 from August and then £44 annually from April 2023 to get their green bins emptied

Residents across Warwick district will have to pay for garden waste collections from August.

Warwick, Leamington Spa and Kenilworth residents will pay £20 from 1 August to have their green bins emptied, going up to £44 the next financial year.

The decision comes after neighbouring Stratford-upon-Avon District Council introduced a fee in April 2021.

It had been a difficult decision to make but the garden waste service is a discretionary one, the council said.

"But as the collection of garden waste is a discretionary service, we would rather give our residents the choice of paying rather than withdrawing it completely," Alan Rhead, portfolio holder for environment, said.

Warwick and Stratford district councils have asked the government for a merger, meaning they would work together on services such as waste collection.