Cabinet asked to approve changes at Household Waste Recycling Centres
At the Cabinet meeting of 11 June, Cheshire West and Chester Council’s Cabinet will consider changes to better manage the recycling and disposal of waste at Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRCs, also known as “tips”) following a public consultation last year.
HWRCs are places where residents can dispose of extra household waste or recycling, as well as items that are not collected through the kerbside waste and recycling collection service.
The Council operates seven HWRCs across the borough, in:
- Chester,
- Ellesmere Port,
- Frodsham,
- Neston,
- Northwich,
- Tattenhall.
- and Winsford
Did you know?
Each year, our HWRCs are visited around 740,000 times and process approximately 40,000 tonnes of household waste and recycling.
From April 2026, the Borough’s HWRCs will be managed by the Council’s wholly owned company, Cheshire West Recycling (CWR), when the current provider’s contract ends. This has presented an opportunity to review the way HWRCs work as the next step in delivering the Council’s Waste Management Strategy, which was agreed in 2021.
HWRCs are vital to increase reuse and recycling and reducing overall waste. Currently, 60% of HWRC waste is recycled or re-used, and last year it cost £2.4 million to operate the sites and manage the recyclable waste, and a further £1.3 million to dispose of the non-recyclable waste.
An eight-week consultation took place on proposals for HWRCs last year, and Council officers have now updated these proposals based on the feedback received from those who took part.
The proposals aim to ensure that HWRCs remain accessible to all residents who need it whilst tackling the minority of excessive users and commercial users who are bringing unauthorised waste. Dealing with unauthorised waste costs the Council money and means there is less room for residents to use the sites. Updating existing HWRC Reasonable Use procedures can help the Council to operate an affordable service that is accessible and fair for all residents to use to dispose of household waste.
Changes to the procedures would include each household being able to visit HWRCs 30 times in a 12-month period, increased from 24 visits following consultation feedback. A visit in a commercial vehicle or a vehicle towing a large trailer would count as two visits. These 30 visits could be used in any way over the 12-month period, for example, spread out over 12 months or condensed into a shorter time, depending on people’s need.
To monitor the number of visits and so that the Council can ensure that only residents disposing of household waste are using the sites, residents would be asked to register their vehicle and home address using a one-off process online or by paper form, with an automated system clocking when a visit is made to a site. Following consultation feedback, residents would also be able to apply for additional visits in exceptional circumstances, and processes would be put in place to make it easier for residents who cannot get to a HWRC to access the service through the help of relatives, friends and neighbours.
Residents will still be able to bring DIY waste to HWRCs without charge. There would be no charge for disposing of household waste, but there would be a limit to the amount of further DIY waste that can be brought without charge.
The Council has listened to feedback from the consultation and as a result has increased the amount of DIY waste that can be brought in one visit from two bags or one bulky fitted item to (up to) eight bags or four bulky fitted items so more homes carrying out their own home improvements can continue to benefit from free disposal. This also reduces the number of journeys some people would have to make. This change still complies with Government guidance setting out the maximum amount of DIY waste that can be accepted without charge from a household in any four-week period.
In line with new Government legislation, people would continue to be able to dispose of DIY waste for free at HWRC sites if it is produced by householders whilst carrying out small-scale construction or demolition works at their home that does not generate income and is not produced more often than four times in a four-week period. Any DIY waste would also be required to be smaller than two 50L rubble bags, or, one bulky or fitted item approximately the size of a bathtub or shower screen. Residents would have the option to dispose of additional DIY waste at HWRCs, or more often than four times in four weeks, for a small charge of £3.70 per bag or item. The proposed charge would be fully used to cover the costs of handling, transporting and disposing of the additional DIY waste.
HWRCs are important to the Borough; they allow residents to dispose of and recycle items that can’t be collected through the regular kerbside service. We are always looking to improve our services in line with best practice, and many areas in the country are already doing what is being proposed here. We need to make sure that we can provide a modernised service that is easy to use, affordable to operate, and helps the Council reach our climate change goals. A ten-year Waste Management Strategy was adopted by the Council in 2021, aiming to reduce overall waste, increase recycling and provide a cost-effective service. Reviewing the way HWRCs work is the next step towards this. By limiting the amount of DIY waste brought without charge and reviewing our Reasonable Use procedures, we aim to prevent tradespeople who are not authorised to dispose of commercial waste at our HWRCs from using the sites, saving money and freeing up access for residents who need it.
For more information on HWRCs, visit: