Recycling Centres in Bridgend to Close One Day a Week in Budget Saving Measure

Recycling centres across Bridgend look set to close for one day a week to save money on the council’s budget.
The report which was given to council members on November 21, outlined how the closure of the borough’s three recycling centres for one day per week could save the local authority as much as £50,000 per year if taken forward.
It would see the recycling centres, currently run by contractors, Kier closed on different days throughout the week to minimise impact on residents, with the site at Tythegston closed on a Tuesday, Maesteg closed on a Wednesday, and Brynmenyn closed on a Thursday.
When responding to the question “Do you feel the proposal to close the CRC sites one day a week should be agreed?” 56% of residents stated no and 44% stated yes.
However, despite the objections, the proposal which was included in the 2023-24 budget will now move forward to the implementation phase, with officers from the local authority planning to liaise with contractor, Kier, to arrange the closure days for each site.
The report read: “The purpose of this report is to advise cabinet of the outcome of the consultation on the closure of each community recycling centre (CRC) for one day per week in order to achieve the budget reduction proposal included in the Medium Term Financial Strategy  2023-24 to 2026-27.”
It added: “Officers highlight for Cabinet members that the shortening of the available hours resulting from this change will likely, at peak times, extend queuing times, however this effect must be considered in the context of the financial position of the authority and the importance of delivering savings.”
Speaking at the meeting Cllr John Spanswick asked why there had been a public consultation, given the saving was already approved as part of the 2023-24 budget, adding it could make a mockery of the consultation process after 56% of residents said they didn’t agree with it.
Officers responded by saying that the process was about more than just the decision of implementation, but was also about learning more on how residents use the recycling centres around them.
The report which discussed the 407 responses to the consultation outlined such habits, including the highest used site, which was said to be in Bryncethin with 49.4% of respondents selecting it as the site that they usually visit.
It also noted that 98.2% of people said that they currently visit the sites in
Bridgend County Borough with 46.9% of those saying they visited on a monthly basis, and 14.1% saying they visited on a weekly basis. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​