New bins system proposed for North YorkshireHarrogate district worst hit as missed bin collections rocketOverflowing bins in Valley Gardens prompt summer fears

A resident has raised concerns about litter in Valley Gardens in Harrogate after bins overflowed at Easter.

North Yorkshire Council has been criticised for its decision to reduce the number of litter bins to save money.

It is spending £478,000 on replacing about 1,500 litter bins in the former Harrogate district with 775 larger bins.

The Stray Ferret has covered the issue extensively, with the council saying in January it would review the policy after complaints.

Eileen Dockray, who took the photos accompanying this article on Sunday morning, raised concerns about the impact of the new approach on Valley Gardens.

She said:

“More than half of the bins in the gardens have been removed.

“I am not sure when they had last been emptied but they were not like that on Saturday morning. Monday was very similar after the good weather and families taking advantage of it.”

Ms Dockray added she feared the situation would get worse as summer approaches and visitor numbers increase.

A North Yorkshire Council spokesman denied there was a problem. They said:

“There was not a reduced service over Easter. The bins were emptied as normal with no overflowing bins reported.”

The spokesperson did not respond to our request for details about the number of bins that have been removed from Valley Gardens.

In 2022, smart bins were trialled in the town as a joint venture between the now defunct Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire Council.

According to a Harrogate borough councillor at the time, the bins used sensors to send alerts when they need emptying to avoid overflowing. Later the same year Harrogate Borough Council installed six smart bins, costing a total of £26,100, in Valley Gardens.

Last year a May bank holiday gathering required a major clean-up operation the following day.

Read more:

‘Teething issues’ to blame for more missed Harrogate bin collections, says council

North Yorkshire Council has blamed “teething issues” for an increase in missed bin collections in the Harrogate district.

Latest figures from the council show there were 1,579 missed collections in the first quarter of the year. The number is an increase on 1,535 in the same period last year.

Council officials said part of the reason for the missed collections, most of which were for garden waste, was due to a “route optimisation process” carried out by Harrogate Borough Council, which was abolished on April 1.

This included changing routes and removing one lorry from the rounds.

However, Michael Leah, North Yorkshire Council’s assistant director of environmental services, described the process as an “overall positive”.

He said:

“I am pleased of the level of waste collection services provided across the county. For the Harrogate area, the optimisation of the garden waste collection service has been positive overall for the council, both in terms of efficiency and reduction in its carbon footprint.

“We noted some ‘teething issues’ from this work with a slightly higher rate of missed garden waste bins during the first quarter of the year. We are already well ahead with resolving any issues arising from that work.”

Read more:

It comes as Harrogate and Knaresborough councillors raised concern over missed collections after it was claimed just 129 bins were missed across the county in the first 100 days of the new council.

Cllr Hannah Gostlow, a Liberal Democrat who represents Knaresborough East, raised the issue at a full council meeting in July when she challenged council leader, Carl Les, over the accuracy of the authority’s figures.

She said:

“Talking with my colleagues across the former Harrogate borough and hearing from my own residents, I understand that there has been a much higher than normal missed general, garden and recycling waste bins.

“Unfortunately it also includes assisted bin collections.”

Cllr Les apologised for the inaccuracy and later sent the correct figures to Cllr Gostlow.

‘Dog waste can now be placed in any bin’, says council

North Yorkshire Council has responded to criticism of its new system for street litter bins.

Some 1,500 smaller litter bins in the Harrogate area are being replaced by a smaller number of new larger bins.

Many of the new bins are situated alongside main roads rather on dog walking routes to make them easier for council workers to get to.

Some dog owners are dumping poo bags in areas where the old bins were rather than walk to main roads and put their dogs on leads.

Dog waste piling up in Jennyfields.

The Stray Ferret has recently reported concerns about this policy in Knox and Jennyfields.

Barrie Mason, assistant director for the environment at the council, said the old bins were removed following a service review and the new approach conformed with good practice guidance from the Waste and Recycling Action Partnership charity.

He said:

“We are currently implementing a new infrastructure for our street litter bins in the Harrogate area.

“The newer bins have a larger capacity and house a wheeled bin. This means they are efficiently emptied by our larger wagons, reducing the risk from manual handling individual bags.

“With the greater capacity, fewer bins are required which helps to reduce street furniture, particularly in locations where two bins may have been placed close together.”

Dog waste ‘no longer classified as hazardous’

Mr Mason added:

“We are implementing new routes which reduce the number of vehicle miles and emissions while freeing up our street cleansing teams to provide a more proactive service, including in our urban areas.

“There are some associated savings from the project, from a reduction in the amount of skips, single use plastic liners and fuel we use.

“Dog waste is no longer classified as hazardous waste and can now be placed in any bin, eliminating the need for specialist bins that further reduce street clutter and manual handling risks. This also means dog waste can be placed in owners’ general waste bins when they return home without adjusting walking routes.”

Read more:

Mr Mason said bins “are emptied less frequently” in off-road areas in places like Jennyfields “but will be emptied as frequently as required”. He added:

“The emptying frequencies and bin locations are something we’ll be continuing to monitor.

“The work in Jennyfields is still ongoing, and officers are communicating with the relevant local councillor over the new locations and any issues that may arise.

“Harrogate leisure centre has a large open space with a basketball court, so we will be installing a bin soon.”

Call for urgent review of new bins after dog poo bags litter Jennyfields

A councillor has called for an urgent review of litter bins in the Jennyfields area of Harrogate after reports of dog poo bags piling up.

North Yorkshire Council has removed three bins close to Harrogate Leisure and Wellness Centre — formerly the Hydro — and replaced them with two larger bins.

The old bins were situated in areas used by walkers and dog owners but the new ones are alongside main roads.

This makes them easier to empty but less convenient for people using the fields around the leisure centre to use.

Consequently litter and dog waste bags are being left to pile up.

Councillor Michael Harrison, a Conservative who represents the area on North Yorkshire Council, said the new bins were designed for dog waste and general waste and are emptied by household waste collection crews rather than requiring a separate collection.

He added:

“These have been successfully rolled out in the other villages I represent after some initial teething problems.

“I am however aware of the specific concerns raised in Jennyfields and have asked for an urgent review of the number and siting of the bins.”

Dog owners are discarding dog waste where the bins used to be on the fields rather than carry it to Ripon Road.

Jennyfields residents have contacted the Stray Ferret with their concerns since the new bins arrived last week.

Elizabeth Horner said:

“I live near the Hydro fields and the amount of rubbish from having no bins in area has got disgusting.

“Sadly I’ve counted 15 bottles on the field today.”

Dog walker Diana Salama added:

“I have spoken to seven other dog walkers who regularly walk their dogs at the Hydro. All were puzzled and confused as there is nowhere to easily dispose of poo.

“One lady commented that to go up to the main road meant a long detour and putting the dog on a lead and she would not do this.

“Two were confused and had ended up taking poo home but had no intention of doing this ongoing. Two had left poo bags where the bin used to be.”

Read more:

She added:

“No one felt the new concept was effective for dog walkers even though it’s clearly better for the council.”

Ms Salama said there was particular anger at the removal of the bin next to the basketball court.

The field near the basketball court.

The Stray Ferret spoke to several dog walkers in the area this morning who agreed. They said the amount of litter and dog waste in this area, where young people congregate, was worrying.

We asked North Yorkshire Council why the change had been made and whether any consultation had been carried out.

However, a spokesperson said the officer responsible was currently on leave and therefore it could not comment.

New bins being rolled out across Harrogate district

The new bin policy is being rolled out across the Harrogate district. About 250 small bins are being replaced by larger ones.

Dog walkers in nearby Knox expressed concerns in June when the change was implemented there.

Photo of Knox resident Maxie Schiffmann looking into a green wheelie bin for dog waste that North Yorkshire Council has placed near her front gate.

Maxie Schiffman-Rowinski has complained to the council about the new dog waste bin in front of her house in Knox.

Paul Haslam, a Conservative who represents Bilton and Nidd Gorge on the council, said the situation would be reviewed at the end of next month.

Cllr Haslam said the new approach freed up time for the street cleansing team to do other jobs, such as sweep streets.

He added it was also more environmentally friendly because the larger bins contained wheelie bins that could be emptied by machines whereas the smaller old bins contained plastic bags that had to be replaced regularly.

Council’s new dog poo policy causes a stink in Knox

A change in the council’s bin regime is seeing dog-waste pile up by the roadside, according to local residents. 

Over the last week, North Yorkshire Council has removed the familiar red dog-waste bins from Knox, which is on the north-west edge of Harrogate. In their place, they have put green wheelie bins, but not all in the same positions as the bins they replace. 

Knox resident Maxie Schiffmann-Rowinski said: 

“They’ve put a wheelie bin right outside our house, and now it’s filling up with dog poo and it really stinks in this warm weather. 

“All of us living down here are pretty angry about this. This lane is very popular with dog-walkers, and some who don’t know about the green bin are just leaving their dog-poo bags on the ground where the dog-waste bin used to be.  

“I’ve complained to the council via their online form, but had no reply.” 

Asked about the move, Karl Battersby, North Yorkshire Council’s corporate director of environment, told the Stray Ferret the bins had been removed following a service review, and that the council was being guided by good practice outlined by the Waste and Recycling Action Partnership in its Right Bin, Right Place study. 

He said:  

“The newer bins have a larger capacity and house a wheeled bin. This means they are efficiently emptied by our larger wagons, reducing the risk from manual handling individual bags. With the greater capacity, fewer bins are required which helps to reduce street furniture, particularly in locations where two bins may have been placed close together. 

“This and other new bins will be emptied less frequently due to the increase in capacity, but they will be emptied as often as required, taking seasonal variances into account. 

“The replacement bin at the end of Knox Lane was planned to be further down the lane, in close proximity to existing street furniture. We will check it’s correctly positioned.” 

Composite image of, on the left, a new bin placed at the end of Knox Lane in Harrogate by North Yorkshire Council, and, on the right, bags of dog faeces doscrded by dog-walkers in the place where the old dog-waste bin used to be.

The council has installed a large new bin at the end of Knox Lane… but some dog-walkers have yet to get the message.

Paul Haslam, the North Yorkshire councillor serving Bilton and Nidd Gorge, said he was party to the decision-making process that led to the policy change, but that it had not been implemented as he had imagined it would be. He said: 

“This looks like a well-intentioned project that’s gone wrong. I agreed with the principle behind the plans: to make it easier by using more machinery, which in some cases would result in changes of locations and frequency of emptying. 

“But it’s quite obvious that the way it’s turned out is not ideal – there are not enough bins and some of them are in the wrong place.” 

North Yorkshire Council’s Mr Battersby said that the bin replacements in Bilton and Knox would be followed by others in Harrogate.  

He said: 

“Surrounding parishes have already had the work completed, and Bilton is the first of the urban areas to start and receive the new bins.” 

But Cllr Haslam said the policy needed to be reviewed and that’s what the council would do. He said: 

“I’ll be meeting with street-cleansing officers on Monday and we’ll be going over the whole of the Bilton and Knox area and seeing how it can be improved. 

“The council is not going to roll any more bins out until we’ve got Bilton and Knox right.”

Read more:

 

Explained: What happens to bin collections in Harrogate after devolution?

A new council is set to take over in the Harrogate district in four weeks’ time.

Both Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire County Council will make way for North Yorkshire Council on April 1.

While the move throws up questions over council tax and economic development, perhaps the first thought on residents’ minds is who is going to collect the bins?

In this article, we will explain what this means for waste collection and disposal in the district.

Who currently collects my bins?

At the moment, Harrogate Borough Council collects household bins across the district.

Waste collection staff employed by the borough council collect bins on a weekly basis.

This includes garden, general and recycling bins.

What about waste disposal?

Disposal of waste is currently a responsibility for North Yorkshire County Council.

It is responsible for household waste recycling centres, including those on Wetherby Road and Pennypot Lane in Harrogate and Dallamires Lane in Ripon.

The county council also oversees the Allerton Waste Recovery Park near Knaresborough, which recycles and converts biodegradable waste to biogas.  

What will happen on April 1?

On April 1, the borough council will no longer be responsible for waste collections as it will not exist.

Instead, North Yorkshire Council will take over the responsibility and bins will be collected as normal.

Staff who currently work for the borough council on waste collection will move over to the new authority.

The new council will also be responsible for the running of household waste recycling centres in the district, as well as Allerton Waste Recovery Park.

Residents may not notice much change in their collections. However, for council bosses, the idea is that the transition to the new authority is smooth.

Read more:

 

Harrogate council defends new ‘oversized’ bins

Harrogate Borough Council has defended installing new bins in Burton Leonard after concerns it is “oversized”.

The council installed the bin on the village green last month as part of changes to waste collection.

More than 250 of the facilities have been put in place across the district, with a further 450 to come.

Council officials said the new bins are able to be collected by waste vehicles, which means more time can be spent on litter picking.

However, residents have said the bins are not wheelchair accessible, are “eight to 10 times” bigger than normal bins and appear unsightly.

Burton Leonard Parish Council objected to the plan to install the bin.

It said:

“The parish council objected on the grounds that the proposed bins would appear incongruous in a conversation area. Other parishes objected on similar-grounds.”

A borough council spokesperson said:

“We want to ensure litter is kept to a minimum across the Harrogate district.

“The new litter bin infrastructure allows street bins to be emptied by our waste vehicles so reducing resource requirements, miles travelled and the associated carbon emissions.

“Meaning we can spend more time litter picking and keeping the district clean and looking its best.

“There are ongoing discussions with the parish council on the final location of one of the bins installed and we will work with them to find a satisfactory solution.”

Read more:

 

Festive bin collection dates revealed in Harrogate district

Harrogate Borough Council has published details of changes to waste and recycling collection days over the festive period.

This year, there will only be changes on the week commencing Monday, December 26.

Collections will return to normal on Monday 2 January.

Anyone who is unsure of their dates can check here on the council website.

Details of what can be recycled or reused, including wrapping paper, are available here.

Household waste recycling centres in the Harrogate district are open every day over the festive period except Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.

They are open every other day from 8.30am to 4pm except on Wednesdays, when they are closed.

Details of when the recycling centres and other services run by North Yorkshire County Council are open over the holidays are here.

Read more: