Introduction.

In this blog, we'll dive into the latest developments and news from the recycling and waste management sector.

Our aim is to keep you informed with in-depth analysis, expert opinions, and detailed updates on innovations, policies, and trends shaping the industry.

England's household recycling rate falls.

England's household recycling rate fell to 43.4% in 2022, the lowest since 2015. This marks a drop from 2021 and puts England behind other UK nations, such as Wales, which has a rate of 56.9%. Experts express concern that England may miss its target of a 65% recycling rate by 2035. The dip is attributed to changes in waste habits post-pandemic and inconsistent recycling policies. The article calls for stronger government action and more standardised recycling efforts nationwide.

For more details, check the full article here.

£4bn funding gap by 25/26, says Unison.

A Unison report reveals a £4 billion funding gap for councils across England, Scotland, and Wales for the upcoming financial year, warning of severe cuts to essential services like waste collection. The report urges immediate government action to stabilise finances and protect public services.

For more details, read the full article here.

New WEEE codes confirmed by the Environment Agency.

The Environment Agency (EA) has confirmed that starting January 1, 2025, all Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) shipments will require notification under new waste shipment codes.

For more details, view the full article here.

Warning over emissions trading scheme.

The UK Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) could lead to significant financial impacts for local councils, according to recent warnings. The scheme, designed to reduce carbon emissions, will require councils to buy carbon allowances for their public services, including waste collection and street lighting. With escalating costs, this could strain already stretched budgets, potentially leading to service cuts or increased taxes. Experts are calling on the government to mitigate the financial burden on local authorities.

For more details, you can read the full article here.

Calls for the end of T8 permit exemptions.

Former Environment Secretary George Eustice has called for the abolition of T8 permit exemptions

For further details, view the full article here.

Introduction:

In this section, we’ll share the latest news from the bookinglab HWRC community.

The goal here is to inform you of any product updates or community-led initiatives and help you connect with councils tackling common challenges.

The top five news stories from September include:

1. We've welcomed Lancashire CC and Essex CC to our HWRC community
2. We now partner with two-thirds of the largest county councils
3. We attended the LARAC Lounge at this year's ESS Expo
4. We held a webinar with West Sussex County Council
5. We rolled out four new product features/updates

Welcome Lancashire CC and Essex CC.

We are delighted to welcome Lancashire County Council and Essex County Council into our HWRC community.

We are working with the team at Lancashire County Council to roll out our market-leading HWRC Booking Service to 16 sites across the county, with the system scheduled to go live this week. Similarly, we will partner with Essex County Council to implement the service at 21 sites across their county, set for a later launch (upon their contract expiration with the incumbent provider)

With these latest partnerships, we are helping over two-thirds of the UK's largest county councils increase their sites' efficiency.

This means over 10 million people will use our technology to book their tip visits — a milestone we are incredibly proud of!

We attended the LARAC Lounge at this year's RWM Expo.

On the 11th and 12th of September, we had the pleasure of joining over 10,000 recycling and waste management professionals at this year’s RWM Expo.

We were situated in the LARAC Lounge — a bespoke area within the RWM Expo dedicated to local government professionals. It was fantastic to catch up with so many of you in person, understand your unique challenges, and explore how booking technology can help drive much-needed cost efficiencies.

The LARAC Lounge definitely delivered on its promise to be a hub of innovation, networking, and strategic discussions.

It was especially encouraging to see a platform specifically tailored for local authorities, ensuring their insights, challenges, and achievements are at the forefront of the national dialogue on resource efficiency and sustainability.

We’re looking forward to continuing these important conversations and helping local authorities implement solutions that make a real difference!

We held a webinar with West Sussex County Council:

We were joined by over 70 recycling and waste management experts for a community-driven webinar on the financial impact of HWRC Booking Systems.

During the hour-long session, Wayne Howick, Senior Contracts and Waste Enforcement Officer at West Sussex County Council shared how WSCC leveraged our market-leading HWRC Booking System to achieve estimated annual savings of over £650,000.

We also highlighted key statistics from Kent County Council's waste team, demonstrating how their booking system has generated over £1.4 million in cost savings.

We wrapped up with an interactive Q&A session, featuring a high level of engagement and insightful discussions on a range of fantastic topics.

If you missed it, you can watch the full webinar recording here.

We rolled out new product updates/features:

As always, we invite our user community to provide feedback on what you'd like to see next. Your insights are invaluable in shaping our product roadmap with new features and functionalities that make a real difference.

The features/functionality we delivered this development cycle are:

1. DVLA Registration Lookup enhancements
2. New Visitor Alert Statuses
3. Standardised note fields in the Check-In App
4. Calendar updates
5. Accessibility upgrades

Note: to suggest new features or functionality, please get in touch with your bookinglab account manager.