Five major Birmingham bin and waste changes included in painful budget for crisis-hit city council

The crisis-hit city council says it needs to make around £150 million in savings in the next financial year as it battles to balance its books - and big changes are set to be made to bin collections and waste in general.

The council has found itself in this painful position amid Birmingham-specific missteps, such as an equal pay fiasco and the disastrous implementation of a new IT and finance system, as well as the rising demand for services and previous funding cuts.

The huge list of cuts and changes proposed, alongside an array of rises to fees and charges, was released earlier this month ahead of a full council meeting on February 25, which is set to decide on the budget.

The savings proposals confirm that the council intends to push ahead with its divisive plans to switch to a fortnightly collection of household waste.

They would also have other implications when it comes to bins and the city’s waste, such as the introduction of a second recycling bin and a change which sparked the current bin strike.

With that in mind, here’s five planned changes affecting bin collections and waste in general included within the proposed budget for 2025/26.

1) Fortnightly collections

The move from a weekly to a fortnightly collection of household waste could be introduced for some residents as early as this spring.

The council has said this change is set to be brought in on a ‘phased basis’ from April 2025.

It means the collection of residual waste could become fortnightly in the Sutton Mere Green and Sutton Four Oaks wards in around two months’ time.

Areas served by the Lifford depot, such as Longbridge and West Heath, Northfield, Allens Cross and Frankley Great Park, may not see these changes until November.

The change is part of the council’s plans to transform waste collection, which the authority says will reduce costs and improve reliability.

Coun Majid Mahmood, cabinet member for environment and transport, previously said the changes would provide Brummies “with a better waste collection service that is in line with other councils”.

“I know some residents are concerned about moving to a fortnightly residual waste service,” he added. “But this will not be introduced until we have the food waste collections, meaning people will have less general waste.”

2) Food waste collection and second recycling bin

A weekly food waste collection service is also set to be brought in this year, as well as a second recycling bin which would be used by residents specifically for paper and card.

According to the council, food waste collections will be introduced in ‘stages’ across the city alongside the move to fortnightly collections of household rubbish.

It adds there will be a ‘phased introduction’ of the second recycling bin, also starting in April 2025.

Coun Mahmood said during a cabinet meeting last year that residents who could not accommodate an extra recycling bin would be offered a reusable sack.

RELATED NEWS: Watch bin workers protest outside Council House in dispute over pay

3) Increase in fees

An existing proposal, put forward last year but set to make savings in 2025/26, is to increase the bulky waste charge from £35 to £45.

The council is also planning to “generate additional income” through a 3 per cent increase in the cost of garden waste annual subscriptions, which would rise from £60 to £61.80.

They rose from £50 to £60 per year last year.

4) Cease non-statutory waste prevention activities

Another existing savings proposal is to cease non-statutory waste prevention activities.

In particular, this means removing the team undertaking street quality audits and neighbourhood waste contamination.

Go beyond the story - sign up for our BirminghamWorld newsletter

Quizzed over the current state of Birmingham’s streets earlier this month, council leader John Cotton said: “It’s absolutely essential that we are delivering services that tackle those issues that affect communities.

“That’s why we need to improve the basic service delivery – that’s what that [waste and streets] transformation programme is all about.”

5) Controversial change

The bin strike continues to rumble on in Birmingham, with Unite the union saying industrial action is being taken because of plans to “abolish” the Waste Recycling and Collection Officer (WRCO) in the waste service.

The city council previously insisted that its planned changes, included within the budget, would improve the quality of service delivery and safety.

In a statement, it recently said: “We are disappointed this action is taking place, but we are continuing to work through the dispute resolution procedure.

“Ensuring the safety of our employees and residents is taken extremely seriously, and health and safety is everyone’s responsibility.

“We have undertaken steps to ensure Birmingham City Council colleagues affected by the change in working arrangements are supported.

“There are several options that are available to suit different personal circumstances, and of the 170 affected employees, over 130 have already opted for redeployment, driver training or voluntary redundancy.”