Earlier this year, green bin collections were suspended due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, to enable prioritisation of the collection of black and blue bins, before temporary monthly collections took place throughout June, July and August.

Now, the service is back to normal and the fortnightly collections of green bins will continue until the end of November in line with other years provided by Suez.

Residents across the borough are asked to check our website to confirm the details of their original collection dates and present bins on the kerbside at 7am on the appropriate collection day.

Cabinet member for Communities, Voluntary Sector and the Environment, Cllr Chris McGuinness said: “Thank you to residents for bearing with us at this difficult time. Their cooperation has allowed us to clear the unprecedented backlog of garden waste and we are really pleased to be true to our word and bring the service back to its original fortnightly schedule in timely fashion.

“The bin collection crews have been working flat out in all weathers lately and they are deserving of the praise which many members of the public have kindly given.

“I must stress that the amount of residual and recycled waste has increased significantly during lockdown and levels were similar to what we would experience around the Christmas and New Year period.

“That presents its own challenges, which we’re pleased to overcome through the hard work and dedication of the Suez teams. If residents do have surplus green waste, they are invited to continue to home compost – it is great for the environment – or visit one of our six Household Waste Recycling Centres.”

Residents are also being reminded:

• Make sure your bin is not too heavy. There is a risk it may break when lifted onto the vehicle, and if staff think it is too heavy to lift safely it won’t be collected. If you are unsure, please take some waste out.
• Don’t leave extra waste next to green or black bins. The only extra waste which can be left out is extra recycling on blue bin collection days. If you have been storing extra garden waste in a bag or other container, please empty this in to your green bin after your first collection, or consider taking it to a Household Waste Recycling Centre. Please visit the website first as some restrictions are still in place as well as social distancing measures that you will need to prepare for before you go www.doncaster.gov.uk/hwrc
• Bins might be collected at a different time of day, so to avoid a missed collection please ensure you place your bin out for collection by 7am on your collection day.
• Residents are urged to check their collection day nearer the time by visiting www.doncaster.gov.uk/recycling where details of collection days will be available. The link also contains helpful information about bin collections and recycling and a reminder of what goes where when it comes to recycling your waste.

To find out more about services that have been affected by Coronavirus (COVID-19) visit Doncaster Council’s website where you will find useful information and a full list of services affected www.doncaster.gov.uk/coronavirus

Keep up to date with news by subscribing to Doncaster Council and partners email newsletter by visiting www.doncaster.gov.uk/emailsignup and stay updated on the following channels: www.facebook.com/CovidDoncaster and @CovidDoncaster on Twitter.