It is like Netflix for bins... subscription service coming to collect garden waste in Macclesfield
We live in a society full of subscription services.
From TV streaming services, to recipe boxes, to Amazon purchases.
Many online purchases can become a subscription these days, and there is set to be another rolling payment for you to keep track of.
But it is for something physical, rather than for something digital.
That is because Cheshire East Council, who take out our bins in Macclesfield, are launching a subscription service for collecting garden waste from your property.
The pay-to-collect service, set to launch in January 2024, will see a site go live for it this October with further information.
But here is what we know for now.
The Council claims introducing the charges is "is a significant element in the council achieving a balanced budget in 2023-25, while also protecting essential frontline services and continuing to deliver on its ambitions and priorities."
Residents will pay a proposed annual subscription fee of £56 for it to be collected. That averages out at £4.66 per month. Criticism has been lodged at politicians for introducing this during a 'cost of living crisis'.
"By opting-in to the service, residents can continue using their garden bin to recycle their green waste," reads a statement on the Cheshire East Council website.
The scheme – details of which will be considered by the council's environment and communities committee later this month – follows approval of the council's medium-term financial strategy for 2023/24 to 2026/27, which was consulted on in January this year.
For now, continue to dispose of your waste in the normal way. Collections will continue as normal.
The frequency of how often the subscription service will be collected, and whether you can 'opt in or out' of certain weeks or months, remains to be seen.
Councillor Mick Warren, chair of Cheshire East Council's environment and communities committee, said: "The council continues to face significant financial pressures and there is an overall £20m funding gap to fill. We therefore have no choice but to look to alternative sources of revenue generation.
"The collection of garden waste is not a core service that councils are required to provide – and the costs associated with it have risen considerably – but it is our wish that we continue to make this service available to residents, while also ensuring we can make required savings of around £4m.
"We can do this by introducing an annual subscription service – something which more than 65% of local authorities across England have already done including our neighbours in Cheshire West and Chester, with many of these schemes having been in place for several years.
"We do of course recognise the pressures on people's household finances, which is why residents will only pay for the service if they opt-in to the scheme and it remains free for residents to dispose of their garden waste at our household waste recycling centres.
"We also continue to encourage residents to consider trying home composting – it is an excellent and environmentally-friendly way to limit food waste and has huge benefits to people's gardens."
The annual scheme is expected to open to subscriptions in October and go live in January.
Residents who opt-in will have their garden bins emptied as per their usual schedule and will be sent a specialist sticker to attach to their bin, which will feature a unique reference and is designed to fray and tear when removed to prevent them being reused by others.
A report on the green waste subscription, where councillors will be asked to decide on the implementation details of the scheme, will be discussed at the council's environment and communities committee on 27 July.
Extra charges for collecting the two other bins are not currently being introduced.
The garden waste payment comes on top of the Council Tax you already pay to Cheshire East Council, for their waste contractors ANSA to dispose of.
Macclesfield: Learn more about garden waste on the Cheshire East Council website.
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