The introduction of food waste collections for households across Wychavon will be delayed for two years to allow for a smoother and more cost-effective rollout of the service.
All councils in England should offer a separate weekly food waste collection from 1 April 2026 as part of national efforts to drive up recycling rates.
But Wychavon has written to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) to inform them they will not meet the deadline due to a combination of existing contractual constraints, uncertainty over government funding to run the service and Local Government Reorganisation. Food waste collections will now start for Wychavon residents from April 2028, under new arrangements.
With a customer satisfaction score of 91%, Wychavon’s highly regarded waste collection contract with FCC Environment ends on 31 March 2028. The option to add in a separate food waste collection from 1 April 2026 was explored but would not have represented good value for money for the taxpayer and could also potentially have breached contract procurement rules.
Bringing in a separate contractor to provide food waste collections for two years was also considered but would be unlikely to result in a good financial deal for residents.
Wychavon is currently looking at options for delivering the waste collection service beyond April 2028. The situation is complicated by the Government’s plans to abolish Wychavon District Council on 1 April 2028 as part of the reorganisation of local councils.
Cllr Emma Stokes, Wychavon’s Executive Board Member for Resources, Investment and Innovation, said: “It is right we explore every possible option to introduce this new service in a way that delivers the best value for taxpayers. We’re committed to ensuring our residents receive the same high-quality waste and recycling collection service they always have from 1 April 2028 – whether Wychavon exists by then or not.
“While food waste recycling is helpful, cutting food waste altogether is even better - for the environment and people’s pockets. There’s plenty of support on our website, and residents can also sign up to the WychRewards website to earn points and the chance to win prizes for activities including reducing their food waste.”
