SHDC Garden Waste Scheme Update

Thousands of households have signed up for the new chargeable fortnightly garden waste collection service in the South Hams since subscriptions went live a month ago.

Subscriptions for the service went live on 1 November and in the first month thousands of households have signed up. Anyone in the district can sign up; an annual £49 subscription covers collections for one brown wheelie bin, with a maximum of two subscriptions for two bins per household.

Collections will begin in March 2023. Residents wanting to get their first collection in March will need to have signed up to the service by 22 January 2023. This is so Council staff have enough time to create the collection rounds and get everything ready ahead of launch.

If you don’t sign up by 22 January, you’ll still be able to sign up, but your first collection will happen at a later date.

Cllr Keith Baldry, South Hams Executive Member for Environment, said: “The early take up of the service is really encouraging. We’d love to get as many residents as possible signed up by 22 January, so that we can create the most efficient and best collection routes possible for subscribers.

“Our staff are working tirelessly to make sure we’re ready to provide the district with a new and improved garden waste collection service in the spring. We want to reassure residents that the annual subscription fee will purely cover the cost of the service, with no profit being made. Compared to what private companies charge for collections, the annual fee represents good value for money.”

Residents can sign up to the new service in two ways:

• The quickest and easiest way to sign up is on our website: www.southhams.gov.uk/gardenwaste – the website is full of information and useful FAQs on the service.
• Alternatively, call us: You can call us on 01803 861234. We expect phone lines to be busy, so there may be a wait.

Residents can keep their garden waste wheelie bin even if they choose not to subscribe to this service. Anyone who decides not to sign up to the service and would like to have their brown bin removed can fill out our online contact form at:  www.southhams.gov.uk/gardenwaste

Those who decide not to sign up for the service can still take their garden waste to all three recycling centres in the South Hams. Full details, including opening hours, are available online here: South Hams Recycling Centres

Alternatively, people can find out more on home composting possibilities here: Recycle Devon – How to Compost