Refuse and recycling to be collected on same day
by Hammersmith and Fulham Press Office
05/02/2008
New contract leads to same day refuse collection
In a first for the borough, refuse and recycling will now be collected on the same day.
A decision to award the contract for cleaning in the borough to Serco will see streets swept up after collections, leading to a much higher standard of cleanliness than with the current system.
At a cabinet meeting last night (February 4) councillors heard how the change will make the borough’s streets cleaner and greener.
After the meeting H&F Council Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Environment Cllr Nicholas Botterill said, “Residents are rightly demanding cleaner streets and by appointing Serco we expect to see a big improvement in the quality of these services.”
The move to appoint a new refuse collection and street cleansing contractor follows the council’s decision to provide better value for taxpayers and to find a specialist contractor able to expand the recycling and rubbish collection job.
In May 2006, the council decided to market test its services for refuse collection, recycling and street cleansing. At the outset, it was decided that the in-house services should compete for the contracts.
A panel of experts evaluated all the bids. Although the in-house team’s bid was competitive, specialist cleaning company Serco's bid was judged to have the clear edge on quality and was more likely to deliver the step change improvement which the new contract specifications require.
Cllr Botterill added, “The simple process of tendering has already delivered big savings to taxpayers and street cleansing teams will have state-of-the-art machinery and cleaning will happen at the times when it is most needed.
“We will not shy away from putting the interests of residents first by ensuring that we are getting the best possible services at the lowest possible cost to the taxpayer.
“Our search has taken over 18 months, but we will continue to promise – and deliver - a cleaner, greener borough.”
