West Sussex: Waste tip booking system extended

The Book to Recycle system means residents will have to pre-book a slot at their local waste tip

A booking system for residents to visit their local waste tip has been extended across West Sussex.

The Book to Recycle scheme has already been in place in parts of the county since March 2022.

It has now been extended to cover Billingshurst, Burgess Hill, East Grinstead, Midhurst and Chichester.

West Sussex County Council said the change would make the process "easy and efficient" and ensure "value for money".

The system means residents will have to pre-book a slot at their local waste tip, rather than just turning up.

It has been used in Bognor Regis, Crawley, Horsham, Littlehampton, Shoreham and Worthing for almost a year and a county council spokesperson said it had been "welcomed" by residents.

Councillor Deborah Urquhart, cabinet member for environment and climate change, said the system helped "ensure value for money" and increased recycling.

She said: "The Book to Recycle system makes a visit to a recycling centre easy and efficient with staff having more time to help visitors, and also means queues can be avoided."

'Completely unnecessary'

However, some residents said they were concerned the change would lead to an increase in fly-tipping.

They also expressed worries that some elderly people would struggle to make bookings online.

One resident on the West Sussex Recycles Facebook page said the new system might cause problems for older residents "due to lack of internet".

Another resident said: "As a policy it seems to discourage recycling and encourage fly-tipping."

A further tip user said: "It's completely unnecessary to have to book slots."

A council spokesperson said there had been a "slight decrease" in the trend of recorded fly-tipping across West Sussex since January 2021.

They added: "There is no evidence to suggest that booking an appointment to visit a recycling centre results in increased tipping.

"We take fly-tipping seriously and work as part of the West Sussex Waste Partnership with the district and borough councils to monitor and manage this."

Follow BBC South East on Facebook, on X, and on Instagram. Send your story ideas to [e-mail].