Bin collections, facts and figures about our service

Information on the size and challenges and cost of the service we deliver. How we are working to improve and develop our service so that is consistent across our whole area.

Information about our bin collection service including:

Waste and recycling collection, facts and figures

We deliver waste and recycling collections to around 117,000 properties across Westmorland and Furness.

Our crews make 7.5 million collections of waste and recycling from homes each year.

The waste and recycling collection service has a budget of around £8.9 million per year - covering things like salaries for collection teams, vehicles, fuel and maintenance and replacement bins/containers.

Around £1.48 a week of your Council Tax pays for your kerbside waste and recycling collection services, or £77 per year.

For a typical Band D property, that means around 3.5% of your Council Tax goes towards your kerbside waste and recycling collections.

Westmorland and Furness covers 1,500 square miles, making it one of the largest and most rural unitary councils in the country. Our collection crews therefore need to cover a lot of miles to make collections – around 750,000 miles a year. This has impacts on the cost of delivering waste and recycling collections in Westmorland and Furness, particularly in significant fuel and vehicle maintenance costs.

In our November 2024 ‘Community Conversation’ survey we asked residents to rate their satisfaction with current waste and recycling collections in their area. 3,000 people responded to the survey, the results showing:

  • 72.8% said they were either ‘very happy’ or ‘happy’ with the collection teams on their round (compared to 12% who said they were ‘unhappy’ or ‘very unhappy’, the rest were ‘neutral’)
  • 71.7% declared themselves either ‘very happy’ or ‘happy’ with the reliability of their waste/recycling collections (compared to 13.5% ‘unhappy’ or ‘very unhappy’, rest were ‘neutral’)

Collections that we miss

We currently make 99% of kerbside waste and recycling collections across Westmorland and Furness on the scheduled day. 

Unfortunately, there are occasions when we do miss collections. This can be the result of a number of things, such as poor weather, vehicles blocking access to collection points or a collection wagon breaking down.

In the case of poor weather, the most difficult conditions are usually when there is snow or ice on the roads. While it may be possible for our wagons to travel on the main priority routes that have been gritted, it is often very dangerous to take large collection vehicles along untreated side roads and residential streets in order to complete collections. 

That means, just because a resident is able to get their family car off their untreated cul-de-sac, doesn’t mean it is safe or sensible to take a 26 tonne bin lorry on the same road. It can also be extremely hazardous for our crews to work in such conditions on icy pavements and in these circumstances we may have no option other than to cancel collection rounds until the weather and road conditions improve.

For all disruptions to services, we aim to keep our residents updated and informed.

Our 'bin service status updates' list all known issues on any given day. The updates aim to provide information about what the problem is, what we intend to do about it and advice on what to do with your bins/containers.

Of the small percentage of collections that are not made on the scheduled day, in the vast majority of cases we will always try to return to pick up any missed collections as soon as we are able, usually within 48 hours.

Very occasionally, if the disruption is significant and affects a large number of properties, we may advise that we will not be able to return to pick up recycling materials or green waste until the next scheduled collection day.

We will, however, always try to return as soon as it is possible to pick up any missed residual (general) waste, as this is the waste that can get smelly and unpleasant if left uncollected.

While we recognise it may be frustrating if your recycling or green waste is missed, as dry recyclables or compostable materials, these are perfectly safe to be stored until the next scheduled collection day, or can be taken to a Household Waste Recycling Centre.

This is not an option for missed residual waste, so clearing any backlogs of this general waste will always be a priority in periods of significant disruption to collections.

If you believe your waste or recycling collection has been missed, and you can't find the information you are looking for on our bin service update page, then you can report a missed collection online.

Delivering consistent waste and recycling collections for everyone

On April 1 2023 Westmorland and Furness Council took over the delivery of council services, replacing the former district councils in Barrow, Eden and South Lakeland and Cumbria County Council.

We inherited services from the former district councils that had many differences in the way they were delivered and managed. 

This included three very different waste and recycling service delivery models across Barrow, Eden and South Lakeland.

A variety of containers are currently used, from wheelie bins to bags and boxes, some services are ‘in house’, meaning they are run and managed by the council, some areas have all or part of the current service delivered by an external contractor.

There are also differences in the way the services are paid for, with a separate additional charge for green waste in the Barrow area, while green waste is currently a free additional service in South Lakeland and Eden.

We recognise that this means there will be frustrations at the differences in services between the different areas and perceived ‘inequalities’. 

It also means we are not currently optimising resources, contracts, systems and routes across the three areas, that could help people to recycle more and waste less, drive efficiencies and deliver better, more reliable services.

We are committed to improving and harmonising services. We want to make sure as many services as possible are all delivered in the same way, and to the same consistent standard, to all residents across the whole of the new authority area.

That is why we are already working on a comprehensive Waste and Recycling Plan to provide consistent services for the whole of Westmorland and Furness.

As well ensuring everyone gets the same, consistent, kerbside collection services, this will also create opportunities to make the service better and more efficient, saving the taxpayer money and reducing missed collections. 

The process to work through this harmonisation and roll-out a consistent service is long and complex. It will also require substantial logistical and contract changes.

We have now agreed the new collection model, following extensive engagement, consultation and pilot trials, listening to feedback from our communities on what they like and what they’d change about current services.

Read more about the agreed options, how we reached the decision and how it affects you.

 

Garden waste collections

Residents who wish to continue receiving garden waste collections, or wish to receive future collections, will need to subscribe to the service at a cost of £60 per bin per year. The subscription window will open on 1 April and close on 28 June, with only bins displaying a valid sticker collected from 29 June. General household waste and recycling collections remain unaffected.

This change follows decisions made as part of the Council’s 2026/27 budget, agreed at Full Council on 26 February, and reflects the need to review discretionary services in light of significant financial challenges. Garden waste collection is not a statutory service, and introducing a charge ensures fairness with those who use the service contributing to its cost while helping the council protect essential services for all residents.

Find more information about our garden waste collection service.

Use of Refuse Collection Vehicle (RCV) bin wagons for recycling collections

Occasionally there are circumstances where we may need to take measures to clear backlogs of recycling or manage circumstances where our usual ‘side-loading’ recycling vehicle – ones with separate compartments to transport recyclables that have been sorted at the kerbside by the householder - is unavailable.

Backlogs can be the result of poor weather, staffing or vehicle issues, and can mean there’s a risk that dry recyclables (such as cardboard, glass, cans and plastic) go uncollected.

In these circumstances we may utilise an RCV (refuse collection vehicle) bin wagon to either clear the backlog or replace an unavailable recycling vehicle.

In some areas of Westmorland and Furness where green waste collections - that are made using an RCV - are suspended over a period during winter months, we will often have ‘spare’ RCV wagons available. We therefore have the option to deploy these wagons, that would ordinarily be out on green collection rounds, to help support and maintain the recycling service and avoid missed collections or clear backlogs.

In these circumstances we make temporary arrangements with our recycling plant for these loads to be sorted at the plant, rather than at the kerbside. 

This means that these ‘co-mingled’ loads are still sorted and we want to reassure that all the recyclables are all sent for recycling. These loads are still treated as recyclates for recycling and go to a completely different plant for sorting than residual (grey bin) waste.

None of these recyclables go to landfill.

It is worth also saying that, even when collected in a dedicated recycling vehicle and placed in separate compartments, kerbside recycling always requires some degree of sorting at the plant.

In some areas we collect more than one type of recyclable material in the same container, for example plastic and cans are collected together in the same (blue bag) container in South Lakeland. These materials are always sorted at the plant into steel and aluminium and different grades of plastic.

When we use the RCV and co-mingle all recycling, the process at the plant is just an extension of that sorting procedure for all the recyclables in that load.

These arrangements and use of this type of wagon are only ever used in the circumstances described and on a temporary basis and usually only affect a small number of properties, where there are large volumes of dry recyclables and it is deemed preferable to collect everything or clear a backlog and sort at the plant rather than risk recyclables being left uncollected.

What happens to your waste and recycling

All the materials we collect at the kerbside are sent for recycling.

Even the contents of your residual (general) waste bin are sent to a processing plant to be re-used.

We do not send anything directly to landfill.

Our 'recycling process' web page explains exactly what happens to your plastic, glass, cans, paper, card and general waste.