Agenda item

Report of the Executive Director of Environment.

The Committee received a report of the Executive Director of Environment, concerning the annual submission of the Street Cleansing, Waste Collection and Public Conveniences operations and the fees and charges for those services for 2025/26. There was a proposed increase by Retail Price Index (RPI) of 2.7%, where appropriate, for the services covered in the report. The Committee heard that under Local Government Act 2003, the Corporation could only charge on a cost recovery basis for these services.

A Member queried if fly-tipping had a negative financial effect on services, and what powers the City Corporation had to discourage fly-tipping. The response was that the definition of fly-tipping is complex – for instance, the City had relatively low numbers of fly-tipping, but there were frequent instances of bagged waste left by businesses on footways outside of the Time Banding Scheme. New timings for this scheme had been agreed by the Committee, which included a communications campaign to raise awareness. In terms of enforcement, Fixed Penalty Notices were issued against those businesses who obstructed the footway with waste.

Members of the Committee recalled issues in the previous year with the disposal of Christmas trees. The Committee heard that residents of the City outside of the Barbican could take their old trees to Corporation sites such as the Barbican for disposal, which were then used for mulch on Hampstead Heath.

The success of working with the EC BID for additional cleansing in ‘hotspot’ areas was raised, and whether this was an appropriate model for street cleansing in privately owned land in the City. The response was that it needed to be clear that the identified ‘hotspot’ areas did not supplement the base standard for street cleansing, but was a good model and could assist with the additional cleansing. The difficulty in cleansing privately owned land was identifying and contacting the landowner. The Committee heard that the Policy & Resources Committee were reviewing the governance for BIDs and their value for money. There would be relevant outcomes of this review for the Committee, such as cleansing, which officers would consider how this would be reported back to the Committee in the future.

RESOLVED – That Members approve the following charges in the report with effect from 1^st April 2025:

·       Charges for Street Cleansing services to external clients are increased by 2.7% in line with RPI.

·       Charges for special events and other ad-hoc works provided to third parties continue to be made at full cost plus 30% to cover the City’s management and administration costs.

·       No increase is proposed for bulky waste collections to remain competitive.

·       The general waste charges for educational establishments are increased by 2.7% and food and recycling collection charges should be maintained at the current level to encourage recycling.

·       Charges for the removal of highway obstructions to be increased from £77 to £79 and for the removal of uncollected bagged waste also be increased to £165.62 from £161.27 for up to 10 bags and £5 per bag thereafter.

·       Charges for the staffed toilet facilities at Tower Hill and Paternoster Square conveniences to remain at 50p per use.

·       Costs of smart bins (post mounted cigarette bins) sold to businesses be charged at cost plus 30% to cover the City’s administration costs.

·       Clean City Awards Scheme membership fees are kept the same.