UPDATED: Household Recycling Centres to re-open across Cambridgeshire for essential use only
We are working with Cambridgeshire County Council to put plans in place to re-open Household Recycling Centres (HRCs) from Monday 11 May 2020 for essential use only. For more information, please visit Cambridgeshire County Council's website and read their news update.
It is the Council’s intention to open all nine of its sites.
The Council's plans will make sure that visits to the HRC are safe for residents as well as for employees - with measures in place to ensure social distancing on site. The plans have been prepared jointly with the public health team at the council.
Each of the nine HRCs in the county also has a detailed traffic management plan, drawn up in partnership with Skanska and in consultation with Cambridgeshire Constabulary, to limit the impact on roads around each site.
Local Government Secretary Robert Jenrick's statements over the weekend gave councils in England and Wales the green light to plan site openings as part of a gradual easing of government lockdown measures.
Further details are provided by Cambridgeshire County Council about what each Cambridgeshire site will receive, however some of the key conditions of opening include:
It is advised that journeys to Household Recycling Centres should only be undertaken if waste or recycling cannot be stored at home without causing risk of injury or harm to health.
People who must continue to stay away from these sites are those who are or have anyone in their household, suffering from Covid-19 symptoms, or have been diagnosed as having the virus.
In the meantime, please hold on to the items you were planning to take to your local HRC until they re-open.
During this time, the Council is asking residents to act responsibly and not place items such as DIY waste, excess garden waste or excess recycling into their kerbside general rubbish collection. This will take up space in the collection vehicles needed for general household rubbish.
If you or anyone in your home is self-isolating or confirmed to have Coronavirus, the Council has advised that all personal waste (such as used tissues) and disposable cleaning cloths can be stored securely within disposable rubbish bags. These bags should be placed into another bag, tied securely and kept separate from other waste. This should be put aside for at least 72 hours before being put in your usual external household waste bin.
Household Recycling Centres will be open on Monday for essential use only
The county’s Household Recycling Centres (HRCs) will be open on Monday (11 May) for residents who have essential waste that cannot be stored safely at home. The recycling centres will open their doors for their usual summer hours.
Think before you visit
How we’re planning to make your essential journey safe for you and for staff
Things we can and can’t accept
We can accept all materials as normal, apart from:
This decision to open the Household Recycling Centres for essential use only follows guidance from the Government Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which has now given councils permission to re-open these facilities as part of a gradual easing of current government lockdown restrictions. Further Government advice is here (paragraph 1.1)
Councillor Steve Count, leader at Cambridgeshire County Council, said: “We’re asking residents to be sensible and to stay at home where they can, but we recognise that some residents do have waste they need to dispose of urgently.
“The Government guidance makes it clear that residents should only make a trip to a Household Recycling Centres if the items cannot be safely stored at home and that, where possible, residents should continue to stay at home and either minimise their waste or use kerbside collections.”
The plans to make sure visits to the Household Recycling Centres are safe for staff and employees have been drawn up by Cambridgeshire County Council, together with its site operators Amey and its public health teams. A detailed traffic management plan has also been drawn up in consultation with Cambridgeshire Constabulary to limit the impact on surrounding roads.
Social Media Content
Social media content will be broadcast on the council’s Facebook and Twitter channels throughout the Bank Holiday weekend and next week. It will incorporate general messages from the press release above and will also make use of the following infographic to give residents advice ‘at a glance’.