Decision details

Council considered a report which sought approval for the acceptance of new burdens capital grant funding for the introduction of weekly food waste collection arrangements and to approve capital funding for the purchase of vehicles and containers to meet the Council’s new weekly food waste collection duty.

The report explained that from 1^st April 2026, the Council had to undertake weekly collection of food waste from all domestic households. This had to be separate from waste collected in black (residual), burgundy (dry mixed recycling) and green (garden) bins. 

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) had awarded new burdens funding to the Council, details on which were set out in the report.  The Streetscene (Waste Services) Team did not consider the funding assumptions to be sufficient and had sent a funding review request to DEFRA. 

Regardless of the DEFRA new burdens funding allocated, the capital cost to the Council of implementing weekly food waste collections was estimated to be £1,021,408.  Therefore, to ensure the Council was able to implement the collections by 1^st April 2026, Council was asked to approve a budget for the full cost of meeting the new duty consisting of £699,908 guaranteed funding awarded, leaving a funding shortfall of £321,500.  The shortfall of £321,500 would potentially need to be funded by the Council should the funding review request submitted to DEFRA be unsuccessful.

Approval for budget to cover the potential shortfall in funding was being sought now to allow the procurement of vehicles and waste containers to ensure the new duty of weekly food waste collections could be met by the deadline.

Moved by Councillor Anne Clarke and seconded by Councillor David Bennett

RESOLVED that a budget be added to the capital programme of £1,021,408.  This would be funded from an external grant of £699,908 as a minimum, with £321,500 funded by the Council from available capital resources, including prudential borrowing, if the outcome of the DEFRA review request was unfavourable.

(Strategic Director of Services/Director of Finance & Section 151 Officer)