Decision details

Members received an update on progress to date with food waste implementation, an outline of the requirement for additional budget to purchase food waste collection vehicles and received an update on potential delays to the delivery of the new fleet. Members stated that there was a responsibility to support these measures as the Council addressed recycling rates.

RESOLVED that an additional capital budget of £241,000 for the increased cost of purchasing food waste vehicles be approved. The budget uplift will be added to the Capital Programme in 2026/27 and funded by an additional New Burdens funding allocation and/or prudential borrowing with delegation given to the Interim Deputy Chief Executive and Section 151 Officer to determine the most appropriate and cost-effective way of financing the scheme.

Reason

The Environment Act 2021 introduced a package of statutory measures designed to improve resource efficiency and increase recycling performance nationally. A key outcome of the Act is the implementation of Simpler Recycling, which requires all local authorities in England to provide weekly, separate food waste collections to households.

Options considered and rejected

1.     Short?term rental of food waste vehicles. While feasible, this would introduce unbudgeted revenue expenditure. Officers consider it inappropriate for the Council to incur rental costs when the statutory New Burdens funding provided is insufficient to meet national policy requirements.

2.     Exploration of alternative vehicle makes and models that may be available sooner or at lower cost. However, the specialist nature of food waste collection vehicles limits opportunities for meaningful savings or faster availability without compromising service delivery.