Recycling centres booking system scrapped

A much-criticised booking system for household recycling centres has been scrapped by Shropshire Council.

The system, which was introduced in November, meant that anyone wanting to use any of the county's five centres had to book a slot in advance.

Despite being used by more than 55,000 people in the past few months, the council said it had listened to residents' concerns and from 17 February, cars would no longer need to book.

The local authority also announced in Wednesday's cabinet meeting that the proposed three-week bin collection cycle would not be in introduced in the next financial year, 2025-26.

It did not rule out the idea, but said general waste collections would remain on a two-week cycle and the earliest it would consider a change would be in the 2026-27 financial year.

The council added that car drivers who attend the recycling centres from 17 February will still have to provide a valid form of ID, while vans and trailers will continue to use the booking system.

Councillor Ian Nellins said there had been "a lot of positives" during what he called the booking system's "trial period".

The system helped to reduce queuing and congestion at the sites and reduced the amount of trade waste disposed at the centres, which Shropshire residents paid for, he added.

The scheme was opposed by the Liberal Democrats, who said they would abolish the system if they gained control in May's local elections.

Lib Dem councillor Rob Wilson previously said he had "little faith" any savings would be made.

Tory councillor Nellins said in the meeting that: "Prior to the system there was not data held about who was using the sites and when they were using them.

"We know we have deterred a lot of illegal trade waste and we have turned away many non-Shropshire residents."

He added that the council appreciated that the phone booking system "was not good", but thanked residents for their "cooperation and patience".

The local authority was previously blamed for a 20% rise in fly-tipping cases following the introduction of the booking scheme.

Figures show reports of fly-tipping logged by the council rose last year from 260 cases in 2023 to 314 cases for the same period between the beginning of October and the end of December.

The Conservative-run council also agreed during Wednesday's cabinet meeting to to find £4m to spend on getting the Whitchurch Civic Centre back open.

The building closed in September 2023 after reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) was found throughout the centre.

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