Redditch’s expanded garden waste service is now welcoming new customers.

Borough residents can apply now to have 20 fortnightly brown bin garden waste collections between February and November next year, while stocks last.

Redditch Borough Council’s Portfolio Holder for Environmental Services, Cllr Brandon Clayton, said: “It gives me great pleasure to say that more people in Redditch can sign up now to get our new garden waste collection service.

“We know many people have been waiting for this chance, and I encourage you to please act now if you want to sign up. This expansion for new collections that start in the spring is not unlimited, and so it will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis at this time.”

It takes moments to sign up at www.redditchbc.gov.uk/gardenwaste or, if you cannot sign up online, you can call 01527 881188 to speak to a member of the council’s Environmental Services team.

The service costs just £60 per year per brown bin, plus a one-time setup fee per bin of £20 which includes the new bin.

The expansion of the service to more households comes after council members voted this month (November) to introduce a full, new garden waste service to the borough. It will take over from and build on previous arrangements, which saw a smaller service delivered by neighbouring Bromsgrove District Council reach its maximum capacity in 2020.

Leader of the Council, Cllr Matt Dormer, added: “Our teams are pulling out all the stops to be able to bring these new Garden Waste collections to lots more people in time for the spring, now that we know more about what the national rules will be on waste collections. We’re proud to deliver a new, expanded service that people have told us they want – and support our households to recycle even more.”

Existing garden waste customers in Redditch will simply be handed over to the new service and will be able to choose to continue their service, as in previous years.

Garden waste collected by the council in the brown bins is recycled in a simple process. It is shredded and then composted naturally in large outdoor rows, becoming useful soil conditioner to go back into local gardens.