Garden waste collection charges could rise for the third year in a row in West Devon next April, writes Alison Stephenson.

Fees have increased from £40 to £55 since 2023.

There are almost 7,000 households subscriptions for garden waste collections in the borough and this is expected to generate an income of £374,000 by the end of the financial year, some £14,000 more than predicted.

Some properties have multiple subscriptions.

The council’s ‘hub committee’ agreed that a fee review should take place after hearing that garden waste charges in some parts of Devon are higher.

In North Devon, fees rose to £60 in April and in Mid Devon they are between £60 and £70 depending on bin size.

Torridge and Teignbridge district councils charge £55 but Teignbridge charges £5 less for households receiving council tax support, a system replicated in Torbay where standard rates are £50, but £40 for concessions.

In East Devon, where more than 21,000 customers use the green waste collection service, the cost is £52 a year.

Steve Mullineaux, West Devon’s deputy chief executive and director of customer service delivery, said that whilst West Devon is doing ok on garden waste subscriptions, it is quite low in comparison to neighbouring authorities.

The council increased fees for the first time in six years in 2023 because of rising costs.

It believes the service is good value for money, being “much cheaper” than organising private collections and more convenient than taking material to recycling centres.

Recycling levels within the borough have remained relatively static over the past few years at 54 per cent.

A new action plan has been launched to re-engage residents in recycling which will include roadshows, and waste and recycling advisors visiting areas that that don’t recycle sufficiently well.

Cllr Jeff Moody (Ind, Tavistock North), lead member for customer experience and waste and recycling, said the borough had delivered a “very high value service” over the last 12 months through the council’s contractor FCC Environment, with very few missed bin collections – fewer than the national average of 80 per 100,000.

However, a report to the committee said the operation had experienced some challenges with high levels of absences and had to rely more on agency staff.

The committee heard that costs for the waste contract are expected to exceed the budget of £3.7 million by £30,000 because of inflation, there is a predicted shortfall in the sale of recycled material of £26,000, which is 13 per cent of the budgeted income of £208,000 and there are additional equipment costs of £75,000.

Cllr Neil Jory (Con, Milton Ford) paid tribute to the “guys and girls” on the waste and recycling rounds who do their best for people and are cheerful despite the weather.

In other waste and recycling news, a new chewing gum removal machine has had its first trial in Tavistock, which the borough council thinks is a great success, having being used to remove graffiti and sticky labels, as well as chewing gum from hard-to-reach areas.

Two machines will operate in West Devon and two in the South Hams.