Rotherham Council have made the decision to suspend itโs paid garden waste collections for six weeks
The council said the decision has been made to โprioritise essential waste in the face of reduced staff numbersโ and will start immediately on Monday, 30th March.
โThe Council continues to try to maintain essential services to residents during these unprecedented times, a number of staff are affected by Coronavirus (COVID-19) and need to be off work in order to self-isolate to protect others, or because they have been designated as vulnerable by the government and need to remain at home for 12 weeks.โ
โOne third of Rotherham Councilโs refuse collection staff are not currently in work as a result.โ
Rotherham Council will continue prioritise critical services including providing waste removal services to the NHS and general pink lid bin waste.
The decision was made considering which waste can be most safely stored by residents at home for a longer period of time.
Residents who signed up to the ยฃ40 collection fee have been advised that they may not receive all of their collections for the year.
โCustomers will be informed of arrangements to rectify any collections missed once the situation has subsided and services have returned to normal.โ
โThe Council will review the position again at the end of the six-week suspension.โ
โHouseholds are advised to keep their brown bin on their property and not on the pavement, and to only collect cuttings if they can be stored.โ
โWe apologise for the inconvenience caused during this time and thank residents for their patience and understanding.โ
On Friday (28th March) Police forced the closure of all Recycling Centres due to the large volume of visitors disposing of non-essential waste.
