Council wins national award for its efforts to encourage people to recycle more

Wiltshire Council has won a national award in recognition of its work to encourage people to recycle as much as possible.

The council's campaign, Recycling: Let's Sort It was successful in the 'Best communications campaign of the year' at the LARAC Conference Celebration Awards. The LARAC (The Local Authority Recycling Advisory Committee) Conference is the leading event in the local authority waste and recycling calendar. 

The council's campaign got under way in February 2023 and aims to increase recycling rates and reduce the amount of contamination. This followed an increase in items being put in the blue-lidded bins that can't be recycled through the council's kerbside collection scheme.

Data for December 2022 showed that over 18% of materials sent to the council's waste facility were items that were incorrectly put in the bin. However, following the start of the campaign, that decreased considerably, and in April 2023 the figure for input contamination reduced to under 10%

Cllr Nick Holder, Wiltshire Council Cabinet Member for Waste, said: "We are delighted to win this award for our work to encourage people to recycle as much as possible. Our Recycling: Let's Sort It campaign will continue as it really gets to the heart of all that we're trying to achieve as a waste service.

"We've asked that people make simple changes and ensure they are putting the right materials in the right bins, and that small change in behaviour helps make a big difference. Winning this national award demonstrates we're making great progress and we'll be working hard to see that continue. We thank everyone for their support."

Some of the common items incorrectly placed in blue lidded bins include:

• Carrier bags and bin bags - put these in the general waste bin for energy recovery.
• Hard plastics, such as toys and plant pots - take these to a household recycling centre for recycling; or put in the general waste bin for energy recovery.
• Scrap metals - take these to a household recycling centre for recycling.
• Nappies - put these in the general waste bin for energy recovery.

The current focus of the 'Recycling: Let's Sort It' campaign is to encourage people to sort their waste out before they visit their local household recycling centre (HRC), ensuring that all items are separated correctly. The council's data shows that more than a third of the items put in the general rubbish skips at HRCs could have been recycled. If people don't have time to do this before they set off, the council is gradually introducing designated sorting areas at each of its HRCs to give people the opportunity to sort their materials on-site as easily as possible - with friendly staff on hand to provide advice and guidance. More information, including which centres currently have sorting areas, can be found at  www.wiltshire.gov.uk/hrc-waste-sorting.