Tandridge recycling scheme rubbished by residents

HOMEOWNERS have rubbished a much-heralded recycling scheme due to be introduced by Tandridge District Council in October.

As part of the plan, residents will be given three new recycling bins, adding 5 and 20 litre food caddies and a new wheelie bin to the collection. The council claim the scheme will save £1 million a year and increase household recycling rates to 60 per cent.

But many have said the idea has been ill thought-out as they won't have the space to store so many bins.

Sarah Crossman, a 47-year-old teaching assistant from Ellice Road in Oxted, said: "We've got no place for the extra bins here.

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"They don't even take wheelie bins down this road anyway. I'm in favour of recycling generally but that's too many bins."

Another Oxted resident, Barbara Burton, 75, added: "It's a ridiculous and rubbish idea. I haven't got any room to stack the extra bins.

"If they bring any new bins down here to me I'll push them down the road and leave them in the car park."

The idea for the scheme – which will be rolled out on October 1 this year – follows a survey conducted by the district council to get people's views on recycling.

More than 4,000 questionnaires were sent out and found that people were in favour of recycling in principle – although less than half of the forms were returned.

It also mentioned the possible introduction of one new wheelie bin, which people were in favour of, but made no mention of the extra bins that are now due to be introduced as well.

Bridget Carey, 80, from Oxted, said: "I don't want too many bins.

"We're not allowed to put them in the road and I can't put them in the drive because they will block the garage, so where would I put them?"

Many of the issues surrounding flats with shared bins and people who live in narrow roads and in terraced houses, or maybe those who are physically impaired, have also not been addressed by the council.

According to the authority's website there is no plan in place at the moment to deal with these inevitable problems.

Instead they say they will deal with them on an individual basis.

Some residents say they are willing to give the scheme the benefit of the doubt.

Claire Slack, a 42-year-old midwife, said: "I think it's good. As the time comes I will make room for it so I can recycle more."

According to the council, the expected £1 million savings from the scheme will not be used to lower council tax but instead plug a funding gap created by a lower grant from central government.

Keith Masters, contracts manager at Tandridge council, said: "Clearly there will be an impact on space for some people and where they absolutely can't accommodate the new bins we have smaller issue bins or plastic sacks that could be available."