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Waste bin dispute

Archived press release

Date Published: 06/08/08

Congleton Borough Council consistently failed to collect all of a man’s household waste and, when he asked for a second bin, it made no proper assessment of waste generated by his household.

Congleton Borough Council consistently failed to collect all of a man’s household waste, finds Local Government Ombudsman, Anne Seex. In her report, issued today (6 August 2008) she finds the Council’s faults also included failure to respond effectively to the man’s complaints, unreasonable delay in making and communicating a decision on his request for a second wheeled bin, and making no proper assessment of waste generated by his household.

A Congleton resident, called ‘Mr H’ in the report, lives in a five-adult household in a rural location. He complained that the Council refused to collect all his non-recyclable household waste and refused to supply him with a second wheeled bin.

After the Ombudsman referred the complaint to the Council, it extended its recycling scheme to include Mr H’s home. It also served a notice under Section 46 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 setting out how Mr H should put out waste for collection.

Although it was clear that Mr H did not qualify for a second wheeled bin under the Council’s policy, it required him to complete a form and then took six months before refusing his request – having made no proper assessment of the volume of waste generated by his household.

The Council failed to respond to the Ombudsman’s enquiries about the legal basis for its actions, and gave a materially misleading account of specific advice it had received from the Department of Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA).

The Ombudsman said: “Parliament has expressly included in legislation the means for councils to enforce Section 46 notices. I have reservations about whether, therefore, a council can legitimately refuse to remove household waste as an alternative means of securing compliance.”

She finds maladministration by the Council in:

  • failing to collect Mr H’s household waste;
  • failing to respond effectively to his complaints; and
  • failing to make any proper assessment of the volume of waste generated by his household before deciding whether to provide a second wheeled bin.

The Council has apologised to Mr H and supplied him with a second bin for as long as he needs it.

In addition, the Ombudsman recommends the Council to:

  • pay Mr H £250 for his time, trouble and costs in taking to the tip his household waste that would not fit into his bin;
  • ensure that all its employees who deal with waste collection are aware of the law and the importance of acting within the law; and
  • review its waste collection policies and practices and train its employees to avoid any recurrence of the problems that Mr H experienced.

Report ref 06/C/10554