ALL seven of Oxfordshire's recycling centres are to stay open in the medium term, Oxfordshire County Council has confirmed.

Yesterday the council announced a £27m management contract has been awarded to Dorset firm W&S Recycling, which already manages five of the sites.

It follows a consultation last year on closure of some of the centres at Alkerton, Ardley, Drayton, Oakley Wood, Redbridge and Stanford in the Vale due to budgetary constraints.

As part of the new contract, which starts on October 1 this year, W&S will increase the charge to non-household waste items such as soil, rubble and DIY waste from £1 to £1.50, the first increase in 15 years.

During the consultation last year 91 per cent of respondents said they favoured charges for non-household waste over centre closures.
Residents will still be able to dispose of all household waste free of charge at any of the centres.

Yvonne Constance, the council's cabinet member for environment, said: "Oxfordshire’s residents told us very clearly that their priority was to see all the HWRCs kept open.

"While the county council does not have a legal obligation to accept non-household waste at HWRCs, this is a popular and highly valued service and I am pleased W&S Recycling is able to continue to offer this."

The contract is for a seven-year period with an option to extend for up to a further three years.

The site at Dix Pit will continue to be managed by FCC Environment but W&S will provide management for recyclable materials.

Oxfordshire’s seven Household Waste Recycling Centres accept about 50,000 tonnes of waste and recyclables each year with an average recycling rate of around 60 per cent. Residents make over 1.25 million visits to the sites every year.