Ards and North Down Council has committed to more bin collections for residents next year.
At a meeting of its Environment Committee this week, elected representatives voted to hire four more waste collection workers, procure two more refuse vehicles and expand collection routes for the borough in the 2023/24 financial year.
This was the Option Two strategy as presented to elected members by Ards and North Down Council’s officers. Option One involved addressing additional service demands through “ever increasing overtime working and piecemeal catch up working across existing collection routes.”
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The council officer report states: “While Option One represents the lowest cost option over the five year period of the business plan, when the non-monetary benefit score is factored in, Option Two becomes the highest ranked option.
“Essentially, whilst theoretically the extra service demand could be managed through increased reliance upon overtime working and piecemeal delivery of bin collections to ongoing increases in residential properties, this is not deemed practicably viable in a manner that would deliver the required continuity and quality of service standards.”
The estimated annual average cost of the extra service required, for extra staff, vehicles and running costs, is £210,000 - with a cost of £197,000 expected in the first year.
The council Environment Director told the committee: “We have seen a significant increase in the number of properties to be serviced over the last seven years. The council has accrued significant additional rating income from those additional properties.
“This is the first occasion in which we have actually had to come to the council and say we have reached the tipping point, whereby we have exhausted all the efficiencies.”
SDLP Councillor Joe Boyle proposed the committee accept Option Two, backed by DUP Councillor Trevor Cummings. Councillor Boyle said: “You have to make a balance between maintaining a high quality service and not hindering that service. I see we have four and a half thousand new properties - you can only manage that for so long before you are stretched.
“We are trying to do the same service with the same resources - that will not work out. The only thing that will be affected is the high quality service we provide. We should be proud of that service, and should want to maintain it. If a fit of spending is involved, we have to spend.”
UUP Councillor Richard Smart said: “This is obviously not a luxury service, but an essential service. Trying to run it on a shoestring is just too risky, so I think it is absolutely right that we increase the support.
“We are a growing borough, so we need to plan for the future. I would pay tribute to our officers - when I think of the scheduling changes they have had to deal with over the years, and all of them have gone pretty much seamlessly.”
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