FINAL FEEDBACK REPORT

Findings from the public engagement and consultation exercise on plans for a three weekly

refuse collection service

Conducted August 2015

Background to the service

The move to a three weekly refuse collection service was agreed in principle by

members during their budget saving discussions held in JanuaryFebruary 2015 and

included in the mid-term financial plan

The change to a three weekly service would be expected to make savings of around

pound250k per annum This was one saving amongst a number discussed and agreed

by members to save a total of pound1163m for this current financial year

Another reason and benefit of moving to a three weekly refuse collection service -

whilst maintaining the weekly recycling service ndash is to increase the councilrsquos current

recycling rate and thus reduce the risk of a hefty fine from Welsh Government The

Welsh Government sets a target for local authorities in relation to how much waste is

sent to landfill If we landfill more than the tonnage set we face a fine

In conjunction with this we are also given recycling targets The current recycling

target of 52 was achieved This means that from all the household waste collected

by the council 52 was recycled By the end of this financial year (March 2016) the

local authority needs to be recycling 58 This will require an additional 4000 tonnes

to be diverted from landfill and instead recycled

Background to the consultation

Purpose

The consultation was undertaken to find out how people currently felt about their

recycling service how easy they found it how full their wheeled bin was currently

and how they thought theyrsquod cope and what concerns they might have about moving

to a three weekly collection

In particular in relation to the proposed move to a three weekly service the survey

aimed to find out from particular households (families with children in nappies or

households with incontinence waste to dispose of) what concerns or impacts they

felt a move to a three weekly service may have on them

Household types

Respondents were firstly asked to identify their household type or the type of

wheeled bin or service they received in relation to their current refuse collection Six

different household types were listed in the survey in the first question Respondents

were then linked to the relevant supplementary questions that affected them and

their families These were predominantly around capacity expectations and choices

regarding extra containersbinsbags etc if they qualified

For example residents with incontinence waste to dispose of were asked if they

would firstly find a separate service for this type of waste useful and if a service was

offered if they could then cope with the wheeled bin they had currently If an

additional service wasnrsquot deemed viable they were also asked if they would prefer a

bigger bin to cope with the extra weeksrsquo worth of waste or if theyrsquod rather have a roll

of purple sacks

All respondents were given opportunity to give final comments or remarks at the end

of the survey and all views have been analysed and are reported upon within this

report

Other methods to comment

Alongside running the online survey paper copies were distributed to all libraries

across Powys and posters displayed to encourage people to take part

Social media and press releases were issued to the local media and emails sent to

town and community councils and all councillors

Telephone interviews were conducted with a sample of residents who had

incontinence waste to dispose of and face to face interviews were conducted by a

Waste Awareness Adviser with families with children in nappies

Three focus groups were also held ndash two in Presteigne and one in Ystradgynlais to

seek views from members of the countyrsquos Citizens Panel A further one planned for

Welshpool was cancelled but a detailed telephone conversationinterview took place

with one resident who had expressed an interest to take part

Details of the feedback from these is on page xxx

Some written responses and emails were also received and logged during the

consultation period by residents town and community councils responding on behalf

of their communities and other interested parties who didnrsquot wish to complete the

online survey Details of the feedback from these respondents is on page xxxx

Report format

This report aims to give readers an overview on the key findings and the respondent

profile

It will then look at each question and also look at results from particular household

types eg households with two or more children in nappies or residents with a 120

litre bin and look at any distinct differences between views given to help draw

conclusions around how best to operate a three weekly collection service going

forward

It will then cover the other responses gained via the consultation including those

received from town and community councils or individuals and the information

gleaned by running the focus groups

Appendices are attached at the end of the report to give a flavour of some of the

comments received to the survey open questions and also comments logged during

the focus groups

A full list of comments is available on request Please note over a thousand

responses were received for two open ended questions

An Overview

The consultation provided a wealth of comments and insights into residentrsquos views

around a move to a three weekly refuse collection service alongside residentsrsquo

current recycling habits

Recycling

The vast majority of respondents felt it was easy to use the current recycling service

and that on the whole they were recycling as much of their waste as possible

However nearly two thirds of respondents (65) said their wheeled bin was already

full when they were due a collection on the fortnightly refuse collection service

Concerns

The key concerns about moving to a three weekly refuse collection service were

around space in the wheeled bin to fit in an extra weekrsquos worth of non-recyclable

waste possible smells vermin storage space if having an extra bin or recycling box

confusion on the frequency cycle and fear of increased fly tipping if people started to

dump their household waste elsewhere as their bins were full and refuse crews

refused to take side waste away There was a request for more information

communication and advice to be given to help families adjust to a three weekly

service and recycle all they could

Specific Households

Qualifying large family households families with children in nappies and residents

with incontinence waste to dispose of were particularly concerned about capacity

issues with the majority wanting a bigger or extra bin to help them store an extra

weekrsquos worth of waste

Families with children in nappies and those with incontinence waste to dispose of did

express an interest in a separate service but the majority were not convinced that

even with this in place they would then be able to manage with the wheeled bin they

currently had

Resident Profile

1781 householders responded to the online survey

52 had a standard 180 litre wheeled bin currently 11 were on purple sacks 9 had the smaller 120 litre bin 8 were families with two or more children in nappies 6 had incontinence waste and a further 6 were large families consisting of six or more people

Of those providing details over 1000 respondents were female and 500 male Nearly half the respondents (47) were under 45 years of age 40 were aged 45 ndash 64 years and 13 were aged 65+ Just under a quarter (22) said they had a disability

Key Findings

Recycling Service

87 of households found it either veryfairly easy to recycle their waste using the boxes provided for paper plastics glass or food waste

13 of respondents felt it was either fairlyvery difficult

216 respondents gave insights into why they found it difficult to recycle Reasons included recycling boxes being an awkward shape or size or not big enough or needing more boxes boxes being stolen space issues understanding what is and isnrsquot recyclable having to carry the boxes through the house on collection day boxes getting dirty when left out all day collection points being a distance away from home mobility issues to get the boxes to the kerbside etc

The vast majority of householders (91) stated they either did their bit or went above and beyond to ensure they recycled everything they could

Only 7 respondents (1) said they hadnrsquot got time to recycle and couldnrsquot be bothered to do so The remainder (6) said they recycled some items of waste but it was a bit time consuming sometimes

Refuse Collection Service

When asked how full their wheeled bin was currently when due a collection 259 residents (18) said it was either a quarter or half full 235 (17) said their bin was 34 full and 924 respondents (65) said their bin was full up

Of the 197 households on purple sacks the majority (79) put one or two sacks out currently when due a collection 16 placed 3 sacks out and 5 or 9 residents were putting out 4 or more sacks every fortnight

Overall the majority of residents felt they wouldnrsquot be able to manage with the bin they had currently with a move to a three weekly service Two thirds (66) stated they would find it hard 19 of respondents though felt they would manage without any problems and 15 were not too sure at this stage

Similarly 64 of residents on purple sacks felt they wouldnrsquot cope whilst just over a third were confident A number of concerns were expressed by residents on purple sacks around their rurality and fears around rodents and vermin being attracted if bags are stored outside the property Residents who

live in flats were also concerned about storage of the sacks for another week and the issues around smells

Interestingly just over 40 of households with a 120 litre bin currently felt they would cope on a three weekly service even though they had the smallest size bin 17 were not sure and the remaining 40 felt they may need to upgrade to the standard 180 litre bin

Although a number of respondents were interested in a separate nappy collectionincontinence waste service they did not feel that with this in situ that they would be able to cope with their current bin 70 of families with children in nappies were interested in a separate collection scheme but when asked if they felt with this in place it could free up space in their wheeled bin and they could then manage with their current wheeled bin 60 said no The figures who residents with incontinence waste were similar but with a more even split with regard to being able to manage 63 of resident with incontinence waste were interested in a separate collection and of these 49 felt they would be able to cope with their current bin meaning that 51 were not convinced

Question by question findings

When analysing surveys there are different methods of looking at the data given

The county council adopts the method by which you calculate the percentages

based on those who answer the question and discount those that give no view

In Question 1 below 23 respondents choose not to state what resident type they

were This means the total number of people who answered the question was 1758

(the base)

This is then used to work out the percentage of responses for each resident type

Eg For a large family consisting of 6 or more people there were 108 responses To

calculate the percentage response you do the following sum

108 1758 x 100 = 6

This means we can say that 6 of respondents who answered the question were

families consisting of six or more people

The base figure changes based on how many people answer each question in a

survey Although in total 1781 responses were received not every person answered

every question either because it was relevant or they didnrsquot want to

1 Could you firstly look at the list below and tick the description which best describes your household You are

Answer Count Percentage

A large family consisting of 6 or more people (1) 108 6

A family with 2 or more children in nappies (2) 147 8

A household with incontinence waste or similar (3)

106 6

A household who opted for a smaller 120 litre wheeled bin (4)

157 9

A household on purple sacks (5) 197 11

A household which has the standard 180 litre bin (7)

928 53

Other 115 7

BASE FIGURE 1758 100

No answer given + 23

Total sample 1781

The largest percentage of responses came from those residents who were on a standard 180litre wheeled bin 53 of respondents stated they had this type of bin which is to be expected as these are the bins that were delivered if a household hadnrsquot got additional needs or if they hadnrsquot sought the smaller 120litre bin when the fortnightly service was rolled out The 197 respondents who were on purple sacks made up the next highest figure at 11 Based on the rurality of Powys there are a number of properties that require a different approach and purple sacks offer an alternative to a wheeled bin People living in flats also receive purple sacks The 115 people who had chosen to state ldquootherrdquo when asked for their household type included families who had five people in them families with one child in nappies and some who had visiting grandchildren in nappies Q2 Where do you live Please provide the first 3 or 4 letters of your postcode

1777 postcodes were given which showed that on the whole responses had been received from across the county from Ystradgynlais through to Llanfair Caerinion and Machynlleth to Knighton and Presteigne

Q3 Firstly wed like to know how easy is it for your household to sort your food waste plastics cans glass cardboard and paper ready for the weekly recycling collection

Answer Count Percentage

Very easy 610 34

Easy 947 53

Fairly difficult 155 9

Very difficult 64 4

BASE FIGURE 1776 100

No answer given 5

Total sample 1781

Two follow up questions (Q3a and Q3b) were asked to the 219 respondents who answered fairly or very difficult to Q3

Q3a Please tell us what makes it difficult for you to recycle 216 respondents out of the 219 respondents gave their reasons These included

recycling boxes being an awkward shape or size

boxes being not big enough to hold all the recyclables people had to recycle

people needing more boxes and not knowing how to get them

boxes being stolen

space issues to store the boxes

understanding what is and isnrsquot recyclable

having to carry the boxes through the house on collection day

boxes getting dirty when left out all day

collection points being a distance away from a personrsquos home

mobility issues that people faced in getting the boxes to the kerbside

A full appendix of all the 216 comments received is available on request Some comments

are listed below

We are a top floor flat with limited space for the 3 boxes then I have to put the

boxes out on collection day which are barely full most weeks and so are usually

only put out once a month or so Id like to recycle more but since you took the

wheelie recycle bins away its become much more of a pain than it should be

The recycling itself is easy but the use of recycling boxes is inadequate for the

amount of recycling we undertake We are a household that recycles everything

that can be recycled but would be assisted by smaller wheeled bins for paper

plastic etc Also due to mobility difficulties is difficult to carry boxes to the waste

pickup point

I have problems with mobility and have steps in and out of property and up the side

of the house making it difficult I suffer with arthritis and it hurts my joints

constantly going to the bins

Live up a lane 200 yards long poor surface have to take bins to bottom of

land and have only one leg and am wheelchair bound

The boxes provided are terrible and definitely need improving Nowhere

to store them wheelie bins would be better with smaller stackable boxes

for indoors

Q3b The Councils Waste Awareness Advisors visit households to help them look at their waste and offer some support and advice on how to recycle more or avoid products with lots of packaging Would you like some help on what you can and cant recycle so you can free up space in your wheeled bin ahead of a three weekly collection service

186 respondents out of the 219 answered this question with 14 saying they may like some help 172 said they didnrsquot want a Waste Awareness Adviserrsquos help However on closer scrutiny from the 14 who expressed an interest 11 people went on to fill out the next question which asked for contact details Of these 11 only 8 respondents actually left their details The other 3 respondents had suggested an alternative way for the council to provide information This included using our website and writing to people One respondent said ldquoWritten or website advice in much greater detail is required with specific examples eg Philadelphia cheese topsrdquo

Answer Count

Yes 14

No 172

No answer 33

Total 219

Q3c Which of the following best describes your household type in terms of your approach to recycling

Overwhelmingly 90 of residents feel that they are recycling what they can from their household waste using the weekly kerbside service for glass plastics papercardboard and food waste Just over 90 stated that they were either lsquoavidrsquo recyclers who did all they can or they did their bit and recycled the vast majority of their waste (691 and 107 respectively) Less than 1 (7 respondents) said they put everything in their wheeled bin irrespective of whether or not it could be recycled and 3 (48 respondents) felt that it was the councilrsquos job to collect rubbish and they shouldnrsquot have to recycle

Answer Count Percentage

Avid recyclers who separate everything we can wash it and put it the boxes provided

863 50

A household that does their bit and recycles the vast majority of waste but slips up sometimes and could do a bit more

691 40

A household that recycles some items of waste but not others as itrsquos too much efforttime consuming

107 6

A household that puts everything in their wheeled bin or purple sack ndash wersquove not got time to recycle everything and canrsquot be bothered to do so

7 Less than 1 (04)

A household that feels we pay our council tax and thus shouldnrsquot have to recycle it as well Thatrsquos the councilrsquos job

48 3

BASE (those that answered the question)

1716 100

No answer 65

Total sample 1781

Q4 On average how full would you say your wheeled bin is currently when you are due a collection

Answer Count Percentage

A quarter full (25) 104 7

Half full (50) 155 11

Series1

0

200

400

600

800

Avid recyclersDo my bit

Wheeled binCouncils role

691

1077

48

Recycling Type

Three quarters full (75) 235 17

Full up (100) 916 65

BASE 1410 100

No answer 371

Total sample 1781

The table above shows that nearly two thirds of respondents said that their wheeled bin was currently full up when they were due a collection Just under a fifth said their bin was three quarters full Interestingly when you look at the total number of respondents per household type against those that said their bin was full up on collection day it is clear that the vast majority fall into either the large family or the families with two or more children in nappies categories In the table on the next page 100 out of the 108 large families who answered the survey (93) stated their wheeled bin was full up when due a collection on the current fortnightly service whilst 131 out of the 147 families who had two or more children in nappies (89) said their bin was full up too This shows a clear need for additional capacity when the council moves to three weekly collections for these particular households Similarly 80 of residents who have incontinence waste to dispose of were in the same situation Conversely only around a third of householders (38) who chose to have the smallest wheeled bin possible (the 120litre size) said theirs was full up once a fortnight suggesting that their non-recyclable waste must be very minimal For those who had a standard size 180 litre capacity wheeled bin 58 said it was full

HouseholdBin type Total no of responses

Number who felt their bin was 100 full when due a collection

Large family 108 100

2+ more children in nappies 147 131

Incontinence waste to dispose of 106 85

120 litre bin (small wheeled bin) 157 59

180 litre bin (standard size) 928 539

Total number of households who identified themselves into the categories given

1446 914

The chart here shows where respondents with a 120 litre bin live

Note Residents with purple sacks were not asked this question but a similar question to try and gauge how many bags they were putting out on a fortnightly basis This explains why the total figure given in the chart is 1446 as 197 residents stated they were on purple sacks and the remainder (138) didnrsquot choose a category ndash they chose lsquootherrsquo to describe their household

Q4a When we go to a three weekly rubbish collection do you think yoursquoll be able to manage with the bin yoursquove got

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 263 19

Not sure 217 15

No 924 66

BASE 1404 100

No answer 377

Total sample 1781

In total 1404 respondents out of a possible 1446 who had stated their household type and thus had a wheeled bin of some description answered this follow up question about whether they thought they could manage with the bin they had when the council moved to a three weekly service The table above shows that just under 20 (a fifth) thought they would manage 15 were not sure at this stage and two thirds or 66 didnrsquot think they could manage with their current wheeled bin Not surprisingly 818 of the 924 respondents shown in the above table had stated that their bin was currently full up when they were due a fortnightly collection On this basis itrsquos not surprising that they would feel that there was no more room in their bin for another weekrsquos worth of waste and thus wouldnrsquot manage Again the results showed that predominantly those feeling they

1910

27

3 1 6 3 5 3 1 2 5 1 19

224 4 2

10 11 7 1

157

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

12

0 li

tre

bin

byhellip

LD1

LD2

LD3

LD4

LD5

LD6

LD7

LD8

HR

3

HR

5

NP

8

SA9

SA1

0

SY1

0

SY1

5

SY1

6

SY1

7

SY1

8

SY1

9

SY2

0

SY2

1

SY2

2

No

po

stco

de

Tota

l

Respondents with a 120 litre bin by postcode

wouldnrsquot cope were large families families with children in nappies and those with incontinence waste to dispose of However 473 residents who currently have a standard 180litre bin also felt they wouldnrsquot be able to cope Interestingly there were five respondents who although theyrsquod stated that their 180litre bin was full up when due a collection in the previous question had perhaps reconsidered what they recycled and what they put in their wheeled bin currently because they answered lsquoyesrsquo they would manage on a three weekly cycle No other resident type who had stated their wheeled bin was already full had done so although 55 residents with a 180 litre bin had chosen lsquonot surersquo as their option suggesting that they would reserve judgement and see how a three weekly service worked for them in practice Q4b On average how many purple sacks do you put out currently on the fortnightly service 197 respondents identified themselves as being on purple sacks rather than having a wheeled bin There are a number of reasons why householders are either given or request this alternative provision Predominantly it can be because they donrsquot have space for a wheeled bin they live in a flat they live on a steep incline so a wheeled bin isnrsquot suitable or they live in a rural setting and have a shared residual waste collection point (for some people this can be down a track so in essence itrsquos not possible for a refuse lorry to get down to a property and equally residents wouldnrsquot want to attempt to wheel a bin up to said collection point

As can be seen in the bar chart above the vast majority of the 197 respondents put out just or two bags a fortnight Only 3 people said they tended to put out more than four bags a fortnight

Series10

50

100

150

200

1 2 3 4 4+ No ans Total

72 77

316 3 8

197

No of purple bags put out for collection per fortnight

Q4c When we go three weekly do you think yoursquoll manage as you are doing currently 189 out of the 197 on purple sacks responded to this follow up question with just over a third (37) stating yes they would manage but 63 feeling they wouldnrsquot

The next series of questions focused on the different household types and what the council was considering in terms of mitigations and extra capacity Q5 For large families consisting of six people or more you should currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly if you couldnrsquot fit all your non-recyclable waste into the bin we are considering the following Please state which you would prefer

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 4

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 34

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 12

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 52

Total 102

Out of the 108 residents who stated they were a large family 102 answered this question Overall it appears that for residents with a 180 litre bin the preference was to swap to a bigger 240litre bin Equally those that were already on a 240litrre bin would rather have an additional smaller 120litre bin However purple sacks were the preferred choice for some but the numbers were lower Q6 For families with 2 or more children in nappies you may currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly we are considering a free nappy collection scheme (frequency to be determined but likely to be weekly or fortnightly)

37

63

of respondents on purple sacks

Yes No

which would allow you to dispose of your nappies and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste Would this help 147 respondents had stated that they were in the position of having two or more children in nappies currently 139 of them chose to answer this question 70 felt a free and additional nappy collection service would be a help

The same respondents were then asked a follow up question Q6a If there was a nappy collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks Five of the 139 respondents who answered Q6 chose not to answer this follow up question leaving 134 responses The results showed that 60 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage with their current bin and an extra nappy collection service 40 felt they would be able to manage with six householders also happy to consider swapping back from a 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 48 36

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

6 4

No 80 60

Total 134 100

Finally the same respondents (families with 2 or more children in nappies) were asked one more question

0

20

40

60

80

100

Yes No

70

30

Chart Title

Q6b If the nappy service isnrsquot deemed viable for Powys then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 6

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 42

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 24

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 47

Total 119

119 families answered this final question As was the case for the larger families the preference for those with a 180litre bin was clearly to move to a 240litre wheeled bin instead Those families who were already on the larger bin were more likely to want an extra 120litre bin if there were no nappy collection scheme on offer but 24 did say theyrsquod prefer a roll of purple sacks instead Q7 For households where someone has incontinence waste or similar eg incontinence pads or colostomy bags you may have either a 180litre (standard size) or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly wersquod like to be able to offer a free incontinence wastenappy collection scheme (frequency to be agreed but likely to be weekly or fortnightly) This would allow you to dispose of some of your waste and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste (This scheme would not include colostomy bags) Would this help 106 residents stated they had incontinence waste to dispose of However only 85 choose to answer this first specific question about the proposals around three weekly collections 56 were interested in a free service whilst 29 were not

The same respondents were then asked a similar question as those families with children in nappies

56

29

Interest in incontinence collection scheme

Yes No

Q7a If there was a collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks One more person choose to answer this question so 86 respondents gave a view The results showed that 50 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage but 50 did Looking at the 50 who felt confident 10 of these residents said they were happy to consider swapping back from their current 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 34 40

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

9 10

No 43 50

Total 86 100

Q7b If the service isnrsquot deemed viable then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household 81 out of the 86 respondents who had answered the previous question gave a view on what might work best for them Again there appears to be a preference by residents for an extra bin rather than purple sacks

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 28

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 27

Total 81

Q8 For households who opted for a 120litre bin there is an option to swap to a bigger 180litre bin or to stay as you are if you felt you didnrsquot have much non-recyclable waste to dispose of Which would be your preferred option 157 residents had identified themselves as having a 120litre bin which is the smallest wheeled bin available 144 answered this question 57 were happy to stay on the 120litre bin they had already compared to 43 who wanted to swap to a 180litre bin when the council moved to a three weekly collection

Answer Count Percentage

Stick with the 120litre bin 82

Swap to a 180 litre bin 62

Total 144

Q10 Having considered your household situation and the plans being put forward do you have any major concerns about a change to a three weekly rubbish collection service

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 1358 80

No 336 20

Total 1694 100

This question was asked of all respondents 1694 out of the 1781 respondents answered this question The vast majority (80) had some concerns about the move to a three weekly refuse collection service and these concerns related to a number of issues Residents were asked to give details Q10a The top five concerns were

potential smell of waste after three weeks

vermin

fly tipping

capacity issues re storage andor more boxes

communications and information re- recycling

Q10b What about moving to a monthly rubbish collection service Would

you have any objections if you could store your non-recyclable waste in a

big enough bin

Respondents were given the choice of four answers Two were objecting to a move to four weekly and two were supporting this 1683 responses were received for this question Just under a fifth (19) felt a move to a monthly collection service either now or after the three weekly service had been rolled out for a while would not cause them a problem However 81 did object

Answer Count Percentage

No I wouldnrsquot object It makes sense to go monthly and make the savings now rather than going 3 weekly and then monthly

173 10

No I wouldnrsquot object Irsquod be happy to go three weekly first and then move to a monthly collection over time

145 9

Yes I do object I think expecting households to wait three weeks for a collection is too long ndash savings or no savings Find them elsewhere

626 37

Yes I do object I think our recycling and rubbish collection service are the things that council tax payers can see for their money and going monthly isnrsquot acceptable

739 44

Total 1683 100

Q11 If you have any final comments or suggestions about recyclingrubbish

collections that yoursquod like to make please do so here

Over a thousand comments were received These comments were quite varied and

ranged from residents objecting per se to three weekly collections to some calls for

the council to get much tougher and fine people for not recycling their waste

There were comments that more communications information and advice was

needed to help residents understand what can and canrsquot be recycled and why we are

no longer taking the softer type plastic wrappings or bags This issue about

educating the public and helping them understand more about why certain decisions

are taken and what happens to the waste that goes to be recycled also came up in

the focus groups held in Presteigne in particular

There were some concerns about the potential smell of waste left for three weeks in

a wheeled bin ndash in particular things like pet waste nappies sanitary waste and dog

faeces which is generally put into wheeled bins There were also concerns about

flytipping

Some respondents called for the council to lobby the Welsh and Westminster

governmentrsquos about the cuts to funding and also to lobby and put pressure onto

manufacturers who produce a lot of unnecessary packaging

Other Responses

A further 20+ comments were received from residents via their local councillor from

a town and community council on behalf of their residents or from residents who

either emailed the council via the generic web site or a direct email address or who

rang to speak to an officer

These comments were all logged and analysed The majority resonated with the

views and concerns given by the wider sample and included comments on flytipping

health rats the impact on more urban towns confusion re a 3 weekly collection

cycle lack of garden waste collection storage and space issues operatives role in

keeping streets clean post a collection and comments regarding council tax and

value for money One resident suggested we consider electricity generation as in a

waste to energy plant and another request was made around better promotion and

communications regarding the whole reduce reuse and recycle ethos

Focus Groups

Some focus groups were also held in Presteige and Ystradgynlais with members of

the countyrsquos citizens panel to find out their views and concerns Presteigne

residents had been part of a Welsh Government project called Zero Waste a few

years ago and the majority had a 120 litre bin or purple sacks Residents in

Ystradgynlais were the first to receive the kerbside recycling service A focus group

for Welshpool was organised but only one person was able to attend so a telephone

interview was conducted instead with this resident The full findings will be included

in the final report but are summed up here

Presteigne focus group members were not overly concerned about moving to a three

weekly service but wanted to see better information advice and communications

around why we did and didnrsquot take certain materials and what residents can and

canrsquot recycle using the kerbside boxes and other outlets like the community recycling

sites and the household waste recycling centres They wanted Powys to promote

and make recycling as easy as possible They thought that the council should

assume people could cope with three weekly unless they stated otherwise and

thought residents should try the new service first and then be assessed if they

couldnrsquot manage with the bin they had They thought more could be done at

community recycling sites to allow residents to take other things there for recycling

Batteries and small electrical products were mentioned

Ystradgynlais focus group members felt it was easy to recycle overall but the boxes

were a bit cumbersome and some wanted more as theirs were full up Crews were

praised There were concerns expressed around communal bins for residents in

flats These were full up very quickly and perhaps used by other residents other than

those living in the flats to dispose of extra waste Storage was an issue for those

living in smaller homes and flats and the issue about getting older and putting out

heavy bins and boxes was expressed People felt they were happy to do their bit to

recycle but some families would struggle and need help and extra capacity

The telephone conversation with the Welshpool resident was based around the

difficulties faced by those living in a rural setting and the use of purple sacks and

communal collection points The gentleman had suggestions around better

communications and using the refuse crews to deliver regular flyers and information

to assist residents with their recycling

Conclusions

The purpose of the consultation was to seek and capture views from residents about

how easy they found it to recycle certain items of their household waste currently using the kerbside service (glass cardboard paper certain plastics and food)

how full up their wheeled bin was currently when due a fortnightly collection

what if any concerns they may have about a move to a three weekly refuse collection service

how the council might be able to mitigate for certain households who are more likely to produce more waste based on their personal circumstances (large families residents with incontinence waste to dispose of etc

The feedback received from the consultation will help the service

Understand what concerns households have regarding both the recycling and refuse collection service

Work to address said concerns wherever possible through targeted support and visits to householders who want some help or advice clear generic communications and information via the website posters letters and publicity

A note about market research and consultations

When conducting market research companies use a margin of error and confidence level to ensure that their results are robust and representative of the population they are seeking views from (the population of interest) A consultation however isnrsquot market research as people choose to respond and are not contacted using a sampling methodology People self-select so sometimes when conducting a consultation you only hear the views of the people who are either strongly in favour or strongly object to a proposal The silent majority may not have given a view However when we analyse any consultation results we do consider how robust they are in terms of the population of interest Powys has around 60000 households and a population of around 130000 Every household has the refuse collection and recycling service in one form or another so the population of interest is 60000 To get a robust and representative view of the population as a whole - using an market industry calculator ndash we needed over a thousand households to respond to the survey With 1781 householders responding minus the two Town and Community councils (1779) we can be 95 confident that the views given represent those of Powys households as a whole within a margin of error of 3 This means that as in question 3 where we ask people how easy they find it to recycle and 34 state ldquovery easyrdquo we can be sure that if we repeated the survey the results would be between the range of 31 and 37 When conducting consultation exercise Powys County Council works to the National Principles for Public Engagement in Wales httpwwwparticipationcymruorguknational-principles

All respondents were given opportunity to give final comments or remarks at the end

of the survey and all views have been analysed and are reported upon within this

report

Other methods to comment

Alongside running the online survey paper copies were distributed to all libraries

across Powys and posters displayed to encourage people to take part

Social media and press releases were issued to the local media and emails sent to

town and community councils and all councillors

Telephone interviews were conducted with a sample of residents who had

incontinence waste to dispose of and face to face interviews were conducted by a

Waste Awareness Adviser with families with children in nappies

Three focus groups were also held ndash two in Presteigne and one in Ystradgynlais to

seek views from members of the countyrsquos Citizens Panel A further one planned for

Welshpool was cancelled but a detailed telephone conversationinterview took place

with one resident who had expressed an interest to take part

Details of the feedback from these is on page xxx

Some written responses and emails were also received and logged during the

consultation period by residents town and community councils responding on behalf

of their communities and other interested parties who didnrsquot wish to complete the

online survey Details of the feedback from these respondents is on page xxxx

Report format

This report aims to give readers an overview on the key findings and the respondent

profile

It will then look at each question and also look at results from particular household

types eg households with two or more children in nappies or residents with a 120

litre bin and look at any distinct differences between views given to help draw

conclusions around how best to operate a three weekly collection service going

forward

It will then cover the other responses gained via the consultation including those

received from town and community councils or individuals and the information

gleaned by running the focus groups

Appendices are attached at the end of the report to give a flavour of some of the

comments received to the survey open questions and also comments logged during

the focus groups

A full list of comments is available on request Please note over a thousand

responses were received for two open ended questions

An Overview

The consultation provided a wealth of comments and insights into residentrsquos views

around a move to a three weekly refuse collection service alongside residentsrsquo

current recycling habits

Recycling

The vast majority of respondents felt it was easy to use the current recycling service

and that on the whole they were recycling as much of their waste as possible

However nearly two thirds of respondents (65) said their wheeled bin was already

full when they were due a collection on the fortnightly refuse collection service

Concerns

The key concerns about moving to a three weekly refuse collection service were

around space in the wheeled bin to fit in an extra weekrsquos worth of non-recyclable

waste possible smells vermin storage space if having an extra bin or recycling box

confusion on the frequency cycle and fear of increased fly tipping if people started to

dump their household waste elsewhere as their bins were full and refuse crews

refused to take side waste away There was a request for more information

communication and advice to be given to help families adjust to a three weekly

service and recycle all they could

Specific Households

Qualifying large family households families with children in nappies and residents

with incontinence waste to dispose of were particularly concerned about capacity

issues with the majority wanting a bigger or extra bin to help them store an extra

weekrsquos worth of waste

Families with children in nappies and those with incontinence waste to dispose of did

express an interest in a separate service but the majority were not convinced that

even with this in place they would then be able to manage with the wheeled bin they

currently had

Resident Profile

1781 householders responded to the online survey

52 had a standard 180 litre wheeled bin currently 11 were on purple sacks 9 had the smaller 120 litre bin 8 were families with two or more children in nappies 6 had incontinence waste and a further 6 were large families consisting of six or more people

Of those providing details over 1000 respondents were female and 500 male Nearly half the respondents (47) were under 45 years of age 40 were aged 45 ndash 64 years and 13 were aged 65+ Just under a quarter (22) said they had a disability

Key Findings

Recycling Service

87 of households found it either veryfairly easy to recycle their waste using the boxes provided for paper plastics glass or food waste

13 of respondents felt it was either fairlyvery difficult

216 respondents gave insights into why they found it difficult to recycle Reasons included recycling boxes being an awkward shape or size or not big enough or needing more boxes boxes being stolen space issues understanding what is and isnrsquot recyclable having to carry the boxes through the house on collection day boxes getting dirty when left out all day collection points being a distance away from home mobility issues to get the boxes to the kerbside etc

The vast majority of householders (91) stated they either did their bit or went above and beyond to ensure they recycled everything they could

Only 7 respondents (1) said they hadnrsquot got time to recycle and couldnrsquot be bothered to do so The remainder (6) said they recycled some items of waste but it was a bit time consuming sometimes

Refuse Collection Service

When asked how full their wheeled bin was currently when due a collection 259 residents (18) said it was either a quarter or half full 235 (17) said their bin was 34 full and 924 respondents (65) said their bin was full up

Of the 197 households on purple sacks the majority (79) put one or two sacks out currently when due a collection 16 placed 3 sacks out and 5 or 9 residents were putting out 4 or more sacks every fortnight

Overall the majority of residents felt they wouldnrsquot be able to manage with the bin they had currently with a move to a three weekly service Two thirds (66) stated they would find it hard 19 of respondents though felt they would manage without any problems and 15 were not too sure at this stage

Similarly 64 of residents on purple sacks felt they wouldnrsquot cope whilst just over a third were confident A number of concerns were expressed by residents on purple sacks around their rurality and fears around rodents and vermin being attracted if bags are stored outside the property Residents who

live in flats were also concerned about storage of the sacks for another week and the issues around smells

Interestingly just over 40 of households with a 120 litre bin currently felt they would cope on a three weekly service even though they had the smallest size bin 17 were not sure and the remaining 40 felt they may need to upgrade to the standard 180 litre bin

Although a number of respondents were interested in a separate nappy collectionincontinence waste service they did not feel that with this in situ that they would be able to cope with their current bin 70 of families with children in nappies were interested in a separate collection scheme but when asked if they felt with this in place it could free up space in their wheeled bin and they could then manage with their current wheeled bin 60 said no The figures who residents with incontinence waste were similar but with a more even split with regard to being able to manage 63 of resident with incontinence waste were interested in a separate collection and of these 49 felt they would be able to cope with their current bin meaning that 51 were not convinced

Question by question findings

When analysing surveys there are different methods of looking at the data given

The county council adopts the method by which you calculate the percentages

based on those who answer the question and discount those that give no view

In Question 1 below 23 respondents choose not to state what resident type they

were This means the total number of people who answered the question was 1758

(the base)

This is then used to work out the percentage of responses for each resident type

Eg For a large family consisting of 6 or more people there were 108 responses To

calculate the percentage response you do the following sum

108 1758 x 100 = 6

This means we can say that 6 of respondents who answered the question were

families consisting of six or more people

The base figure changes based on how many people answer each question in a

survey Although in total 1781 responses were received not every person answered

every question either because it was relevant or they didnrsquot want to

1 Could you firstly look at the list below and tick the description which best describes your household You are

Answer Count Percentage

A large family consisting of 6 or more people (1) 108 6

A family with 2 or more children in nappies (2) 147 8

A household with incontinence waste or similar (3)

106 6

A household who opted for a smaller 120 litre wheeled bin (4)

157 9

A household on purple sacks (5) 197 11

A household which has the standard 180 litre bin (7)

928 53

Other 115 7

BASE FIGURE 1758 100

No answer given + 23

Total sample 1781

The largest percentage of responses came from those residents who were on a standard 180litre wheeled bin 53 of respondents stated they had this type of bin which is to be expected as these are the bins that were delivered if a household hadnrsquot got additional needs or if they hadnrsquot sought the smaller 120litre bin when the fortnightly service was rolled out The 197 respondents who were on purple sacks made up the next highest figure at 11 Based on the rurality of Powys there are a number of properties that require a different approach and purple sacks offer an alternative to a wheeled bin People living in flats also receive purple sacks The 115 people who had chosen to state ldquootherrdquo when asked for their household type included families who had five people in them families with one child in nappies and some who had visiting grandchildren in nappies Q2 Where do you live Please provide the first 3 or 4 letters of your postcode

1777 postcodes were given which showed that on the whole responses had been received from across the county from Ystradgynlais through to Llanfair Caerinion and Machynlleth to Knighton and Presteigne

Q3 Firstly wed like to know how easy is it for your household to sort your food waste plastics cans glass cardboard and paper ready for the weekly recycling collection

Answer Count Percentage

Very easy 610 34

Easy 947 53

Fairly difficult 155 9

Very difficult 64 4

BASE FIGURE 1776 100

No answer given 5

Total sample 1781

Two follow up questions (Q3a and Q3b) were asked to the 219 respondents who answered fairly or very difficult to Q3

Q3a Please tell us what makes it difficult for you to recycle 216 respondents out of the 219 respondents gave their reasons These included

recycling boxes being an awkward shape or size

boxes being not big enough to hold all the recyclables people had to recycle

people needing more boxes and not knowing how to get them

boxes being stolen

space issues to store the boxes

understanding what is and isnrsquot recyclable

having to carry the boxes through the house on collection day

boxes getting dirty when left out all day

collection points being a distance away from a personrsquos home

mobility issues that people faced in getting the boxes to the kerbside

A full appendix of all the 216 comments received is available on request Some comments

are listed below

We are a top floor flat with limited space for the 3 boxes then I have to put the

boxes out on collection day which are barely full most weeks and so are usually

only put out once a month or so Id like to recycle more but since you took the

wheelie recycle bins away its become much more of a pain than it should be

The recycling itself is easy but the use of recycling boxes is inadequate for the

amount of recycling we undertake We are a household that recycles everything

that can be recycled but would be assisted by smaller wheeled bins for paper

plastic etc Also due to mobility difficulties is difficult to carry boxes to the waste

pickup point

I have problems with mobility and have steps in and out of property and up the side

of the house making it difficult I suffer with arthritis and it hurts my joints

constantly going to the bins

Live up a lane 200 yards long poor surface have to take bins to bottom of

land and have only one leg and am wheelchair bound

The boxes provided are terrible and definitely need improving Nowhere

to store them wheelie bins would be better with smaller stackable boxes

for indoors

Q3b The Councils Waste Awareness Advisors visit households to help them look at their waste and offer some support and advice on how to recycle more or avoid products with lots of packaging Would you like some help on what you can and cant recycle so you can free up space in your wheeled bin ahead of a three weekly collection service

186 respondents out of the 219 answered this question with 14 saying they may like some help 172 said they didnrsquot want a Waste Awareness Adviserrsquos help However on closer scrutiny from the 14 who expressed an interest 11 people went on to fill out the next question which asked for contact details Of these 11 only 8 respondents actually left their details The other 3 respondents had suggested an alternative way for the council to provide information This included using our website and writing to people One respondent said ldquoWritten or website advice in much greater detail is required with specific examples eg Philadelphia cheese topsrdquo

Answer Count

Yes 14

No 172

No answer 33

Total 219

Q3c Which of the following best describes your household type in terms of your approach to recycling

Overwhelmingly 90 of residents feel that they are recycling what they can from their household waste using the weekly kerbside service for glass plastics papercardboard and food waste Just over 90 stated that they were either lsquoavidrsquo recyclers who did all they can or they did their bit and recycled the vast majority of their waste (691 and 107 respectively) Less than 1 (7 respondents) said they put everything in their wheeled bin irrespective of whether or not it could be recycled and 3 (48 respondents) felt that it was the councilrsquos job to collect rubbish and they shouldnrsquot have to recycle

Answer Count Percentage

Avid recyclers who separate everything we can wash it and put it the boxes provided

863 50

A household that does their bit and recycles the vast majority of waste but slips up sometimes and could do a bit more

691 40

A household that recycles some items of waste but not others as itrsquos too much efforttime consuming

107 6

A household that puts everything in their wheeled bin or purple sack ndash wersquove not got time to recycle everything and canrsquot be bothered to do so

7 Less than 1 (04)

A household that feels we pay our council tax and thus shouldnrsquot have to recycle it as well Thatrsquos the councilrsquos job

48 3

BASE (those that answered the question)

1716 100

No answer 65

Total sample 1781

Q4 On average how full would you say your wheeled bin is currently when you are due a collection

Answer Count Percentage

A quarter full (25) 104 7

Half full (50) 155 11

Series1

0

200

400

600

800

Avid recyclersDo my bit

Wheeled binCouncils role

691

1077

48

Recycling Type

Three quarters full (75) 235 17

Full up (100) 916 65

BASE 1410 100

No answer 371

Total sample 1781

The table above shows that nearly two thirds of respondents said that their wheeled bin was currently full up when they were due a collection Just under a fifth said their bin was three quarters full Interestingly when you look at the total number of respondents per household type against those that said their bin was full up on collection day it is clear that the vast majority fall into either the large family or the families with two or more children in nappies categories In the table on the next page 100 out of the 108 large families who answered the survey (93) stated their wheeled bin was full up when due a collection on the current fortnightly service whilst 131 out of the 147 families who had two or more children in nappies (89) said their bin was full up too This shows a clear need for additional capacity when the council moves to three weekly collections for these particular households Similarly 80 of residents who have incontinence waste to dispose of were in the same situation Conversely only around a third of householders (38) who chose to have the smallest wheeled bin possible (the 120litre size) said theirs was full up once a fortnight suggesting that their non-recyclable waste must be very minimal For those who had a standard size 180 litre capacity wheeled bin 58 said it was full

HouseholdBin type Total no of responses

Number who felt their bin was 100 full when due a collection

Large family 108 100

2+ more children in nappies 147 131

Incontinence waste to dispose of 106 85

120 litre bin (small wheeled bin) 157 59

180 litre bin (standard size) 928 539

Total number of households who identified themselves into the categories given

1446 914

The chart here shows where respondents with a 120 litre bin live

Note Residents with purple sacks were not asked this question but a similar question to try and gauge how many bags they were putting out on a fortnightly basis This explains why the total figure given in the chart is 1446 as 197 residents stated they were on purple sacks and the remainder (138) didnrsquot choose a category ndash they chose lsquootherrsquo to describe their household

Q4a When we go to a three weekly rubbish collection do you think yoursquoll be able to manage with the bin yoursquove got

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 263 19

Not sure 217 15

No 924 66

BASE 1404 100

No answer 377

Total sample 1781

In total 1404 respondents out of a possible 1446 who had stated their household type and thus had a wheeled bin of some description answered this follow up question about whether they thought they could manage with the bin they had when the council moved to a three weekly service The table above shows that just under 20 (a fifth) thought they would manage 15 were not sure at this stage and two thirds or 66 didnrsquot think they could manage with their current wheeled bin Not surprisingly 818 of the 924 respondents shown in the above table had stated that their bin was currently full up when they were due a fortnightly collection On this basis itrsquos not surprising that they would feel that there was no more room in their bin for another weekrsquos worth of waste and thus wouldnrsquot manage Again the results showed that predominantly those feeling they

1910

27

3 1 6 3 5 3 1 2 5 1 19

224 4 2

10 11 7 1

157

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

12

0 li

tre

bin

byhellip

LD1

LD2

LD3

LD4

LD5

LD6

LD7

LD8

HR

3

HR

5

NP

8

SA9

SA1

0

SY1

0

SY1

5

SY1

6

SY1

7

SY1

8

SY1

9

SY2

0

SY2

1

SY2

2

No

po

stco

de

Tota

l

Respondents with a 120 litre bin by postcode

wouldnrsquot cope were large families families with children in nappies and those with incontinence waste to dispose of However 473 residents who currently have a standard 180litre bin also felt they wouldnrsquot be able to cope Interestingly there were five respondents who although theyrsquod stated that their 180litre bin was full up when due a collection in the previous question had perhaps reconsidered what they recycled and what they put in their wheeled bin currently because they answered lsquoyesrsquo they would manage on a three weekly cycle No other resident type who had stated their wheeled bin was already full had done so although 55 residents with a 180 litre bin had chosen lsquonot surersquo as their option suggesting that they would reserve judgement and see how a three weekly service worked for them in practice Q4b On average how many purple sacks do you put out currently on the fortnightly service 197 respondents identified themselves as being on purple sacks rather than having a wheeled bin There are a number of reasons why householders are either given or request this alternative provision Predominantly it can be because they donrsquot have space for a wheeled bin they live in a flat they live on a steep incline so a wheeled bin isnrsquot suitable or they live in a rural setting and have a shared residual waste collection point (for some people this can be down a track so in essence itrsquos not possible for a refuse lorry to get down to a property and equally residents wouldnrsquot want to attempt to wheel a bin up to said collection point

As can be seen in the bar chart above the vast majority of the 197 respondents put out just or two bags a fortnight Only 3 people said they tended to put out more than four bags a fortnight

Series10

50

100

150

200

1 2 3 4 4+ No ans Total

72 77

316 3 8

197

No of purple bags put out for collection per fortnight

Q4c When we go three weekly do you think yoursquoll manage as you are doing currently 189 out of the 197 on purple sacks responded to this follow up question with just over a third (37) stating yes they would manage but 63 feeling they wouldnrsquot

The next series of questions focused on the different household types and what the council was considering in terms of mitigations and extra capacity Q5 For large families consisting of six people or more you should currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly if you couldnrsquot fit all your non-recyclable waste into the bin we are considering the following Please state which you would prefer

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 4

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 34

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 12

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 52

Total 102

Out of the 108 residents who stated they were a large family 102 answered this question Overall it appears that for residents with a 180 litre bin the preference was to swap to a bigger 240litre bin Equally those that were already on a 240litrre bin would rather have an additional smaller 120litre bin However purple sacks were the preferred choice for some but the numbers were lower Q6 For families with 2 or more children in nappies you may currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly we are considering a free nappy collection scheme (frequency to be determined but likely to be weekly or fortnightly)

37

63

of respondents on purple sacks

Yes No

which would allow you to dispose of your nappies and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste Would this help 147 respondents had stated that they were in the position of having two or more children in nappies currently 139 of them chose to answer this question 70 felt a free and additional nappy collection service would be a help

The same respondents were then asked a follow up question Q6a If there was a nappy collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks Five of the 139 respondents who answered Q6 chose not to answer this follow up question leaving 134 responses The results showed that 60 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage with their current bin and an extra nappy collection service 40 felt they would be able to manage with six householders also happy to consider swapping back from a 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 48 36

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

6 4

No 80 60

Total 134 100

Finally the same respondents (families with 2 or more children in nappies) were asked one more question

0

20

40

60

80

100

Yes No

70

30

Chart Title

Q6b If the nappy service isnrsquot deemed viable for Powys then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 6

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 42

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 24

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 47

Total 119

119 families answered this final question As was the case for the larger families the preference for those with a 180litre bin was clearly to move to a 240litre wheeled bin instead Those families who were already on the larger bin were more likely to want an extra 120litre bin if there were no nappy collection scheme on offer but 24 did say theyrsquod prefer a roll of purple sacks instead Q7 For households where someone has incontinence waste or similar eg incontinence pads or colostomy bags you may have either a 180litre (standard size) or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly wersquod like to be able to offer a free incontinence wastenappy collection scheme (frequency to be agreed but likely to be weekly or fortnightly) This would allow you to dispose of some of your waste and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste (This scheme would not include colostomy bags) Would this help 106 residents stated they had incontinence waste to dispose of However only 85 choose to answer this first specific question about the proposals around three weekly collections 56 were interested in a free service whilst 29 were not

The same respondents were then asked a similar question as those families with children in nappies

56

29

Interest in incontinence collection scheme

Yes No

Q7a If there was a collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks One more person choose to answer this question so 86 respondents gave a view The results showed that 50 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage but 50 did Looking at the 50 who felt confident 10 of these residents said they were happy to consider swapping back from their current 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 34 40

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

9 10

No 43 50

Total 86 100

Q7b If the service isnrsquot deemed viable then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household 81 out of the 86 respondents who had answered the previous question gave a view on what might work best for them Again there appears to be a preference by residents for an extra bin rather than purple sacks

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 28

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 27

Total 81

Q8 For households who opted for a 120litre bin there is an option to swap to a bigger 180litre bin or to stay as you are if you felt you didnrsquot have much non-recyclable waste to dispose of Which would be your preferred option 157 residents had identified themselves as having a 120litre bin which is the smallest wheeled bin available 144 answered this question 57 were happy to stay on the 120litre bin they had already compared to 43 who wanted to swap to a 180litre bin when the council moved to a three weekly collection

Answer Count Percentage

Stick with the 120litre bin 82

Swap to a 180 litre bin 62

Total 144

Q10 Having considered your household situation and the plans being put forward do you have any major concerns about a change to a three weekly rubbish collection service

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 1358 80

No 336 20

Total 1694 100

This question was asked of all respondents 1694 out of the 1781 respondents answered this question The vast majority (80) had some concerns about the move to a three weekly refuse collection service and these concerns related to a number of issues Residents were asked to give details Q10a The top five concerns were

potential smell of waste after three weeks

vermin

fly tipping

capacity issues re storage andor more boxes

communications and information re- recycling

Q10b What about moving to a monthly rubbish collection service Would

you have any objections if you could store your non-recyclable waste in a

big enough bin

Respondents were given the choice of four answers Two were objecting to a move to four weekly and two were supporting this 1683 responses were received for this question Just under a fifth (19) felt a move to a monthly collection service either now or after the three weekly service had been rolled out for a while would not cause them a problem However 81 did object

Answer Count Percentage

No I wouldnrsquot object It makes sense to go monthly and make the savings now rather than going 3 weekly and then monthly

173 10

No I wouldnrsquot object Irsquod be happy to go three weekly first and then move to a monthly collection over time

145 9

Yes I do object I think expecting households to wait three weeks for a collection is too long ndash savings or no savings Find them elsewhere

626 37

Yes I do object I think our recycling and rubbish collection service are the things that council tax payers can see for their money and going monthly isnrsquot acceptable

739 44

Total 1683 100

Q11 If you have any final comments or suggestions about recyclingrubbish

collections that yoursquod like to make please do so here

Over a thousand comments were received These comments were quite varied and

ranged from residents objecting per se to three weekly collections to some calls for

the council to get much tougher and fine people for not recycling their waste

There were comments that more communications information and advice was

needed to help residents understand what can and canrsquot be recycled and why we are

no longer taking the softer type plastic wrappings or bags This issue about

educating the public and helping them understand more about why certain decisions

are taken and what happens to the waste that goes to be recycled also came up in

the focus groups held in Presteigne in particular

There were some concerns about the potential smell of waste left for three weeks in

a wheeled bin ndash in particular things like pet waste nappies sanitary waste and dog

faeces which is generally put into wheeled bins There were also concerns about

flytipping

Some respondents called for the council to lobby the Welsh and Westminster

governmentrsquos about the cuts to funding and also to lobby and put pressure onto

manufacturers who produce a lot of unnecessary packaging

Other Responses

A further 20+ comments were received from residents via their local councillor from

a town and community council on behalf of their residents or from residents who

either emailed the council via the generic web site or a direct email address or who

rang to speak to an officer

These comments were all logged and analysed The majority resonated with the

views and concerns given by the wider sample and included comments on flytipping

health rats the impact on more urban towns confusion re a 3 weekly collection

cycle lack of garden waste collection storage and space issues operatives role in

keeping streets clean post a collection and comments regarding council tax and

value for money One resident suggested we consider electricity generation as in a

waste to energy plant and another request was made around better promotion and

communications regarding the whole reduce reuse and recycle ethos

Focus Groups

Some focus groups were also held in Presteige and Ystradgynlais with members of

the countyrsquos citizens panel to find out their views and concerns Presteigne

residents had been part of a Welsh Government project called Zero Waste a few

years ago and the majority had a 120 litre bin or purple sacks Residents in

Ystradgynlais were the first to receive the kerbside recycling service A focus group

for Welshpool was organised but only one person was able to attend so a telephone

interview was conducted instead with this resident The full findings will be included

in the final report but are summed up here

Presteigne focus group members were not overly concerned about moving to a three

weekly service but wanted to see better information advice and communications

around why we did and didnrsquot take certain materials and what residents can and

canrsquot recycle using the kerbside boxes and other outlets like the community recycling

sites and the household waste recycling centres They wanted Powys to promote

and make recycling as easy as possible They thought that the council should

assume people could cope with three weekly unless they stated otherwise and

thought residents should try the new service first and then be assessed if they

couldnrsquot manage with the bin they had They thought more could be done at

community recycling sites to allow residents to take other things there for recycling

Batteries and small electrical products were mentioned

Ystradgynlais focus group members felt it was easy to recycle overall but the boxes

were a bit cumbersome and some wanted more as theirs were full up Crews were

praised There were concerns expressed around communal bins for residents in

flats These were full up very quickly and perhaps used by other residents other than

those living in the flats to dispose of extra waste Storage was an issue for those

living in smaller homes and flats and the issue about getting older and putting out

heavy bins and boxes was expressed People felt they were happy to do their bit to

recycle but some families would struggle and need help and extra capacity

The telephone conversation with the Welshpool resident was based around the

difficulties faced by those living in a rural setting and the use of purple sacks and

communal collection points The gentleman had suggestions around better

communications and using the refuse crews to deliver regular flyers and information

to assist residents with their recycling

Conclusions

The purpose of the consultation was to seek and capture views from residents about

how easy they found it to recycle certain items of their household waste currently using the kerbside service (glass cardboard paper certain plastics and food)

how full up their wheeled bin was currently when due a fortnightly collection

what if any concerns they may have about a move to a three weekly refuse collection service

how the council might be able to mitigate for certain households who are more likely to produce more waste based on their personal circumstances (large families residents with incontinence waste to dispose of etc

The feedback received from the consultation will help the service

Understand what concerns households have regarding both the recycling and refuse collection service

Work to address said concerns wherever possible through targeted support and visits to householders who want some help or advice clear generic communications and information via the website posters letters and publicity

A note about market research and consultations

When conducting market research companies use a margin of error and confidence level to ensure that their results are robust and representative of the population they are seeking views from (the population of interest) A consultation however isnrsquot market research as people choose to respond and are not contacted using a sampling methodology People self-select so sometimes when conducting a consultation you only hear the views of the people who are either strongly in favour or strongly object to a proposal The silent majority may not have given a view However when we analyse any consultation results we do consider how robust they are in terms of the population of interest Powys has around 60000 households and a population of around 130000 Every household has the refuse collection and recycling service in one form or another so the population of interest is 60000 To get a robust and representative view of the population as a whole - using an market industry calculator ndash we needed over a thousand households to respond to the survey With 1781 householders responding minus the two Town and Community councils (1779) we can be 95 confident that the views given represent those of Powys households as a whole within a margin of error of 3 This means that as in question 3 where we ask people how easy they find it to recycle and 34 state ldquovery easyrdquo we can be sure that if we repeated the survey the results would be between the range of 31 and 37 When conducting consultation exercise Powys County Council works to the National Principles for Public Engagement in Wales httpwwwparticipationcymruorguknational-principles

An Overview

The consultation provided a wealth of comments and insights into residentrsquos views

around a move to a three weekly refuse collection service alongside residentsrsquo

current recycling habits

Recycling

The vast majority of respondents felt it was easy to use the current recycling service

and that on the whole they were recycling as much of their waste as possible

However nearly two thirds of respondents (65) said their wheeled bin was already

full when they were due a collection on the fortnightly refuse collection service

Concerns

The key concerns about moving to a three weekly refuse collection service were

around space in the wheeled bin to fit in an extra weekrsquos worth of non-recyclable

waste possible smells vermin storage space if having an extra bin or recycling box

confusion on the frequency cycle and fear of increased fly tipping if people started to

dump their household waste elsewhere as their bins were full and refuse crews

refused to take side waste away There was a request for more information

communication and advice to be given to help families adjust to a three weekly

service and recycle all they could

Specific Households

Qualifying large family households families with children in nappies and residents

with incontinence waste to dispose of were particularly concerned about capacity

issues with the majority wanting a bigger or extra bin to help them store an extra

weekrsquos worth of waste

Families with children in nappies and those with incontinence waste to dispose of did

express an interest in a separate service but the majority were not convinced that

even with this in place they would then be able to manage with the wheeled bin they

currently had

Resident Profile

1781 householders responded to the online survey

52 had a standard 180 litre wheeled bin currently 11 were on purple sacks 9 had the smaller 120 litre bin 8 were families with two or more children in nappies 6 had incontinence waste and a further 6 were large families consisting of six or more people

Of those providing details over 1000 respondents were female and 500 male Nearly half the respondents (47) were under 45 years of age 40 were aged 45 ndash 64 years and 13 were aged 65+ Just under a quarter (22) said they had a disability

Key Findings

Recycling Service

87 of households found it either veryfairly easy to recycle their waste using the boxes provided for paper plastics glass or food waste

13 of respondents felt it was either fairlyvery difficult

216 respondents gave insights into why they found it difficult to recycle Reasons included recycling boxes being an awkward shape or size or not big enough or needing more boxes boxes being stolen space issues understanding what is and isnrsquot recyclable having to carry the boxes through the house on collection day boxes getting dirty when left out all day collection points being a distance away from home mobility issues to get the boxes to the kerbside etc

The vast majority of householders (91) stated they either did their bit or went above and beyond to ensure they recycled everything they could

Only 7 respondents (1) said they hadnrsquot got time to recycle and couldnrsquot be bothered to do so The remainder (6) said they recycled some items of waste but it was a bit time consuming sometimes

Refuse Collection Service

When asked how full their wheeled bin was currently when due a collection 259 residents (18) said it was either a quarter or half full 235 (17) said their bin was 34 full and 924 respondents (65) said their bin was full up

Of the 197 households on purple sacks the majority (79) put one or two sacks out currently when due a collection 16 placed 3 sacks out and 5 or 9 residents were putting out 4 or more sacks every fortnight

Overall the majority of residents felt they wouldnrsquot be able to manage with the bin they had currently with a move to a three weekly service Two thirds (66) stated they would find it hard 19 of respondents though felt they would manage without any problems and 15 were not too sure at this stage

Similarly 64 of residents on purple sacks felt they wouldnrsquot cope whilst just over a third were confident A number of concerns were expressed by residents on purple sacks around their rurality and fears around rodents and vermin being attracted if bags are stored outside the property Residents who

live in flats were also concerned about storage of the sacks for another week and the issues around smells

Interestingly just over 40 of households with a 120 litre bin currently felt they would cope on a three weekly service even though they had the smallest size bin 17 were not sure and the remaining 40 felt they may need to upgrade to the standard 180 litre bin

Although a number of respondents were interested in a separate nappy collectionincontinence waste service they did not feel that with this in situ that they would be able to cope with their current bin 70 of families with children in nappies were interested in a separate collection scheme but when asked if they felt with this in place it could free up space in their wheeled bin and they could then manage with their current wheeled bin 60 said no The figures who residents with incontinence waste were similar but with a more even split with regard to being able to manage 63 of resident with incontinence waste were interested in a separate collection and of these 49 felt they would be able to cope with their current bin meaning that 51 were not convinced

Question by question findings

When analysing surveys there are different methods of looking at the data given

The county council adopts the method by which you calculate the percentages

based on those who answer the question and discount those that give no view

In Question 1 below 23 respondents choose not to state what resident type they

were This means the total number of people who answered the question was 1758

(the base)

This is then used to work out the percentage of responses for each resident type

Eg For a large family consisting of 6 or more people there were 108 responses To

calculate the percentage response you do the following sum

108 1758 x 100 = 6

This means we can say that 6 of respondents who answered the question were

families consisting of six or more people

The base figure changes based on how many people answer each question in a

survey Although in total 1781 responses were received not every person answered

every question either because it was relevant or they didnrsquot want to

1 Could you firstly look at the list below and tick the description which best describes your household You are

Answer Count Percentage

A large family consisting of 6 or more people (1) 108 6

A family with 2 or more children in nappies (2) 147 8

A household with incontinence waste or similar (3)

106 6

A household who opted for a smaller 120 litre wheeled bin (4)

157 9

A household on purple sacks (5) 197 11

A household which has the standard 180 litre bin (7)

928 53

Other 115 7

BASE FIGURE 1758 100

No answer given + 23

Total sample 1781

The largest percentage of responses came from those residents who were on a standard 180litre wheeled bin 53 of respondents stated they had this type of bin which is to be expected as these are the bins that were delivered if a household hadnrsquot got additional needs or if they hadnrsquot sought the smaller 120litre bin when the fortnightly service was rolled out The 197 respondents who were on purple sacks made up the next highest figure at 11 Based on the rurality of Powys there are a number of properties that require a different approach and purple sacks offer an alternative to a wheeled bin People living in flats also receive purple sacks The 115 people who had chosen to state ldquootherrdquo when asked for their household type included families who had five people in them families with one child in nappies and some who had visiting grandchildren in nappies Q2 Where do you live Please provide the first 3 or 4 letters of your postcode

1777 postcodes were given which showed that on the whole responses had been received from across the county from Ystradgynlais through to Llanfair Caerinion and Machynlleth to Knighton and Presteigne

Q3 Firstly wed like to know how easy is it for your household to sort your food waste plastics cans glass cardboard and paper ready for the weekly recycling collection

Answer Count Percentage

Very easy 610 34

Easy 947 53

Fairly difficult 155 9

Very difficult 64 4

BASE FIGURE 1776 100

No answer given 5

Total sample 1781

Two follow up questions (Q3a and Q3b) were asked to the 219 respondents who answered fairly or very difficult to Q3

Q3a Please tell us what makes it difficult for you to recycle 216 respondents out of the 219 respondents gave their reasons These included

recycling boxes being an awkward shape or size

boxes being not big enough to hold all the recyclables people had to recycle

people needing more boxes and not knowing how to get them

boxes being stolen

space issues to store the boxes

understanding what is and isnrsquot recyclable

having to carry the boxes through the house on collection day

boxes getting dirty when left out all day

collection points being a distance away from a personrsquos home

mobility issues that people faced in getting the boxes to the kerbside

A full appendix of all the 216 comments received is available on request Some comments

are listed below

We are a top floor flat with limited space for the 3 boxes then I have to put the

boxes out on collection day which are barely full most weeks and so are usually

only put out once a month or so Id like to recycle more but since you took the

wheelie recycle bins away its become much more of a pain than it should be

The recycling itself is easy but the use of recycling boxes is inadequate for the

amount of recycling we undertake We are a household that recycles everything

that can be recycled but would be assisted by smaller wheeled bins for paper

plastic etc Also due to mobility difficulties is difficult to carry boxes to the waste

pickup point

I have problems with mobility and have steps in and out of property and up the side

of the house making it difficult I suffer with arthritis and it hurts my joints

constantly going to the bins

Live up a lane 200 yards long poor surface have to take bins to bottom of

land and have only one leg and am wheelchair bound

The boxes provided are terrible and definitely need improving Nowhere

to store them wheelie bins would be better with smaller stackable boxes

for indoors

Q3b The Councils Waste Awareness Advisors visit households to help them look at their waste and offer some support and advice on how to recycle more or avoid products with lots of packaging Would you like some help on what you can and cant recycle so you can free up space in your wheeled bin ahead of a three weekly collection service

186 respondents out of the 219 answered this question with 14 saying they may like some help 172 said they didnrsquot want a Waste Awareness Adviserrsquos help However on closer scrutiny from the 14 who expressed an interest 11 people went on to fill out the next question which asked for contact details Of these 11 only 8 respondents actually left their details The other 3 respondents had suggested an alternative way for the council to provide information This included using our website and writing to people One respondent said ldquoWritten or website advice in much greater detail is required with specific examples eg Philadelphia cheese topsrdquo

Answer Count

Yes 14

No 172

No answer 33

Total 219

Q3c Which of the following best describes your household type in terms of your approach to recycling

Overwhelmingly 90 of residents feel that they are recycling what they can from their household waste using the weekly kerbside service for glass plastics papercardboard and food waste Just over 90 stated that they were either lsquoavidrsquo recyclers who did all they can or they did their bit and recycled the vast majority of their waste (691 and 107 respectively) Less than 1 (7 respondents) said they put everything in their wheeled bin irrespective of whether or not it could be recycled and 3 (48 respondents) felt that it was the councilrsquos job to collect rubbish and they shouldnrsquot have to recycle

Answer Count Percentage

Avid recyclers who separate everything we can wash it and put it the boxes provided

863 50

A household that does their bit and recycles the vast majority of waste but slips up sometimes and could do a bit more

691 40

A household that recycles some items of waste but not others as itrsquos too much efforttime consuming

107 6

A household that puts everything in their wheeled bin or purple sack ndash wersquove not got time to recycle everything and canrsquot be bothered to do so

7 Less than 1 (04)

A household that feels we pay our council tax and thus shouldnrsquot have to recycle it as well Thatrsquos the councilrsquos job

48 3

BASE (those that answered the question)

1716 100

No answer 65

Total sample 1781

Q4 On average how full would you say your wheeled bin is currently when you are due a collection

Answer Count Percentage

A quarter full (25) 104 7

Half full (50) 155 11

Series1

0

200

400

600

800

Avid recyclersDo my bit

Wheeled binCouncils role

691

1077

48

Recycling Type

Three quarters full (75) 235 17

Full up (100) 916 65

BASE 1410 100

No answer 371

Total sample 1781

The table above shows that nearly two thirds of respondents said that their wheeled bin was currently full up when they were due a collection Just under a fifth said their bin was three quarters full Interestingly when you look at the total number of respondents per household type against those that said their bin was full up on collection day it is clear that the vast majority fall into either the large family or the families with two or more children in nappies categories In the table on the next page 100 out of the 108 large families who answered the survey (93) stated their wheeled bin was full up when due a collection on the current fortnightly service whilst 131 out of the 147 families who had two or more children in nappies (89) said their bin was full up too This shows a clear need for additional capacity when the council moves to three weekly collections for these particular households Similarly 80 of residents who have incontinence waste to dispose of were in the same situation Conversely only around a third of householders (38) who chose to have the smallest wheeled bin possible (the 120litre size) said theirs was full up once a fortnight suggesting that their non-recyclable waste must be very minimal For those who had a standard size 180 litre capacity wheeled bin 58 said it was full

HouseholdBin type Total no of responses

Number who felt their bin was 100 full when due a collection

Large family 108 100

2+ more children in nappies 147 131

Incontinence waste to dispose of 106 85

120 litre bin (small wheeled bin) 157 59

180 litre bin (standard size) 928 539

Total number of households who identified themselves into the categories given

1446 914

The chart here shows where respondents with a 120 litre bin live

Note Residents with purple sacks were not asked this question but a similar question to try and gauge how many bags they were putting out on a fortnightly basis This explains why the total figure given in the chart is 1446 as 197 residents stated they were on purple sacks and the remainder (138) didnrsquot choose a category ndash they chose lsquootherrsquo to describe their household

Q4a When we go to a three weekly rubbish collection do you think yoursquoll be able to manage with the bin yoursquove got

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 263 19

Not sure 217 15

No 924 66

BASE 1404 100

No answer 377

Total sample 1781

In total 1404 respondents out of a possible 1446 who had stated their household type and thus had a wheeled bin of some description answered this follow up question about whether they thought they could manage with the bin they had when the council moved to a three weekly service The table above shows that just under 20 (a fifth) thought they would manage 15 were not sure at this stage and two thirds or 66 didnrsquot think they could manage with their current wheeled bin Not surprisingly 818 of the 924 respondents shown in the above table had stated that their bin was currently full up when they were due a fortnightly collection On this basis itrsquos not surprising that they would feel that there was no more room in their bin for another weekrsquos worth of waste and thus wouldnrsquot manage Again the results showed that predominantly those feeling they

1910

27

3 1 6 3 5 3 1 2 5 1 19

224 4 2

10 11 7 1

157

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

12

0 li

tre

bin

byhellip

LD1

LD2

LD3

LD4

LD5

LD6

LD7

LD8

HR

3

HR

5

NP

8

SA9

SA1

0

SY1

0

SY1

5

SY1

6

SY1

7

SY1

8

SY1

9

SY2

0

SY2

1

SY2

2

No

po

stco

de

Tota

l

Respondents with a 120 litre bin by postcode

wouldnrsquot cope were large families families with children in nappies and those with incontinence waste to dispose of However 473 residents who currently have a standard 180litre bin also felt they wouldnrsquot be able to cope Interestingly there were five respondents who although theyrsquod stated that their 180litre bin was full up when due a collection in the previous question had perhaps reconsidered what they recycled and what they put in their wheeled bin currently because they answered lsquoyesrsquo they would manage on a three weekly cycle No other resident type who had stated their wheeled bin was already full had done so although 55 residents with a 180 litre bin had chosen lsquonot surersquo as their option suggesting that they would reserve judgement and see how a three weekly service worked for them in practice Q4b On average how many purple sacks do you put out currently on the fortnightly service 197 respondents identified themselves as being on purple sacks rather than having a wheeled bin There are a number of reasons why householders are either given or request this alternative provision Predominantly it can be because they donrsquot have space for a wheeled bin they live in a flat they live on a steep incline so a wheeled bin isnrsquot suitable or they live in a rural setting and have a shared residual waste collection point (for some people this can be down a track so in essence itrsquos not possible for a refuse lorry to get down to a property and equally residents wouldnrsquot want to attempt to wheel a bin up to said collection point

As can be seen in the bar chart above the vast majority of the 197 respondents put out just or two bags a fortnight Only 3 people said they tended to put out more than four bags a fortnight

Series10

50

100

150

200

1 2 3 4 4+ No ans Total

72 77

316 3 8

197

No of purple bags put out for collection per fortnight

Q4c When we go three weekly do you think yoursquoll manage as you are doing currently 189 out of the 197 on purple sacks responded to this follow up question with just over a third (37) stating yes they would manage but 63 feeling they wouldnrsquot

The next series of questions focused on the different household types and what the council was considering in terms of mitigations and extra capacity Q5 For large families consisting of six people or more you should currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly if you couldnrsquot fit all your non-recyclable waste into the bin we are considering the following Please state which you would prefer

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 4

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 34

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 12

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 52

Total 102

Out of the 108 residents who stated they were a large family 102 answered this question Overall it appears that for residents with a 180 litre bin the preference was to swap to a bigger 240litre bin Equally those that were already on a 240litrre bin would rather have an additional smaller 120litre bin However purple sacks were the preferred choice for some but the numbers were lower Q6 For families with 2 or more children in nappies you may currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly we are considering a free nappy collection scheme (frequency to be determined but likely to be weekly or fortnightly)

37

63

of respondents on purple sacks

Yes No

which would allow you to dispose of your nappies and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste Would this help 147 respondents had stated that they were in the position of having two or more children in nappies currently 139 of them chose to answer this question 70 felt a free and additional nappy collection service would be a help

The same respondents were then asked a follow up question Q6a If there was a nappy collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks Five of the 139 respondents who answered Q6 chose not to answer this follow up question leaving 134 responses The results showed that 60 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage with their current bin and an extra nappy collection service 40 felt they would be able to manage with six householders also happy to consider swapping back from a 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 48 36

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

6 4

No 80 60

Total 134 100

Finally the same respondents (families with 2 or more children in nappies) were asked one more question

0

20

40

60

80

100

Yes No

70

30

Chart Title

Q6b If the nappy service isnrsquot deemed viable for Powys then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 6

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 42

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 24

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 47

Total 119

119 families answered this final question As was the case for the larger families the preference for those with a 180litre bin was clearly to move to a 240litre wheeled bin instead Those families who were already on the larger bin were more likely to want an extra 120litre bin if there were no nappy collection scheme on offer but 24 did say theyrsquod prefer a roll of purple sacks instead Q7 For households where someone has incontinence waste or similar eg incontinence pads or colostomy bags you may have either a 180litre (standard size) or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly wersquod like to be able to offer a free incontinence wastenappy collection scheme (frequency to be agreed but likely to be weekly or fortnightly) This would allow you to dispose of some of your waste and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste (This scheme would not include colostomy bags) Would this help 106 residents stated they had incontinence waste to dispose of However only 85 choose to answer this first specific question about the proposals around three weekly collections 56 were interested in a free service whilst 29 were not

The same respondents were then asked a similar question as those families with children in nappies

56

29

Interest in incontinence collection scheme

Yes No

Q7a If there was a collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks One more person choose to answer this question so 86 respondents gave a view The results showed that 50 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage but 50 did Looking at the 50 who felt confident 10 of these residents said they were happy to consider swapping back from their current 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 34 40

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

9 10

No 43 50

Total 86 100

Q7b If the service isnrsquot deemed viable then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household 81 out of the 86 respondents who had answered the previous question gave a view on what might work best for them Again there appears to be a preference by residents for an extra bin rather than purple sacks

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 28

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 27

Total 81

Q8 For households who opted for a 120litre bin there is an option to swap to a bigger 180litre bin or to stay as you are if you felt you didnrsquot have much non-recyclable waste to dispose of Which would be your preferred option 157 residents had identified themselves as having a 120litre bin which is the smallest wheeled bin available 144 answered this question 57 were happy to stay on the 120litre bin they had already compared to 43 who wanted to swap to a 180litre bin when the council moved to a three weekly collection

Answer Count Percentage

Stick with the 120litre bin 82

Swap to a 180 litre bin 62

Total 144

Q10 Having considered your household situation and the plans being put forward do you have any major concerns about a change to a three weekly rubbish collection service

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 1358 80

No 336 20

Total 1694 100

This question was asked of all respondents 1694 out of the 1781 respondents answered this question The vast majority (80) had some concerns about the move to a three weekly refuse collection service and these concerns related to a number of issues Residents were asked to give details Q10a The top five concerns were

potential smell of waste after three weeks

vermin

fly tipping

capacity issues re storage andor more boxes

communications and information re- recycling

Q10b What about moving to a monthly rubbish collection service Would

you have any objections if you could store your non-recyclable waste in a

big enough bin

Respondents were given the choice of four answers Two were objecting to a move to four weekly and two were supporting this 1683 responses were received for this question Just under a fifth (19) felt a move to a monthly collection service either now or after the three weekly service had been rolled out for a while would not cause them a problem However 81 did object

Answer Count Percentage

No I wouldnrsquot object It makes sense to go monthly and make the savings now rather than going 3 weekly and then monthly

173 10

No I wouldnrsquot object Irsquod be happy to go three weekly first and then move to a monthly collection over time

145 9

Yes I do object I think expecting households to wait three weeks for a collection is too long ndash savings or no savings Find them elsewhere

626 37

Yes I do object I think our recycling and rubbish collection service are the things that council tax payers can see for their money and going monthly isnrsquot acceptable

739 44

Total 1683 100

Q11 If you have any final comments or suggestions about recyclingrubbish

collections that yoursquod like to make please do so here

Over a thousand comments were received These comments were quite varied and

ranged from residents objecting per se to three weekly collections to some calls for

the council to get much tougher and fine people for not recycling their waste

There were comments that more communications information and advice was

needed to help residents understand what can and canrsquot be recycled and why we are

no longer taking the softer type plastic wrappings or bags This issue about

educating the public and helping them understand more about why certain decisions

are taken and what happens to the waste that goes to be recycled also came up in

the focus groups held in Presteigne in particular

There were some concerns about the potential smell of waste left for three weeks in

a wheeled bin ndash in particular things like pet waste nappies sanitary waste and dog

faeces which is generally put into wheeled bins There were also concerns about

flytipping

Some respondents called for the council to lobby the Welsh and Westminster

governmentrsquos about the cuts to funding and also to lobby and put pressure onto

manufacturers who produce a lot of unnecessary packaging

Other Responses

A further 20+ comments were received from residents via their local councillor from

a town and community council on behalf of their residents or from residents who

either emailed the council via the generic web site or a direct email address or who

rang to speak to an officer

These comments were all logged and analysed The majority resonated with the

views and concerns given by the wider sample and included comments on flytipping

health rats the impact on more urban towns confusion re a 3 weekly collection

cycle lack of garden waste collection storage and space issues operatives role in

keeping streets clean post a collection and comments regarding council tax and

value for money One resident suggested we consider electricity generation as in a

waste to energy plant and another request was made around better promotion and

communications regarding the whole reduce reuse and recycle ethos

Focus Groups

Some focus groups were also held in Presteige and Ystradgynlais with members of

the countyrsquos citizens panel to find out their views and concerns Presteigne

residents had been part of a Welsh Government project called Zero Waste a few

years ago and the majority had a 120 litre bin or purple sacks Residents in

Ystradgynlais were the first to receive the kerbside recycling service A focus group

for Welshpool was organised but only one person was able to attend so a telephone

interview was conducted instead with this resident The full findings will be included

in the final report but are summed up here

Presteigne focus group members were not overly concerned about moving to a three

weekly service but wanted to see better information advice and communications

around why we did and didnrsquot take certain materials and what residents can and

canrsquot recycle using the kerbside boxes and other outlets like the community recycling

sites and the household waste recycling centres They wanted Powys to promote

and make recycling as easy as possible They thought that the council should

assume people could cope with three weekly unless they stated otherwise and

thought residents should try the new service first and then be assessed if they

couldnrsquot manage with the bin they had They thought more could be done at

community recycling sites to allow residents to take other things there for recycling

Batteries and small electrical products were mentioned

Ystradgynlais focus group members felt it was easy to recycle overall but the boxes

were a bit cumbersome and some wanted more as theirs were full up Crews were

praised There were concerns expressed around communal bins for residents in

flats These were full up very quickly and perhaps used by other residents other than

those living in the flats to dispose of extra waste Storage was an issue for those

living in smaller homes and flats and the issue about getting older and putting out

heavy bins and boxes was expressed People felt they were happy to do their bit to

recycle but some families would struggle and need help and extra capacity

The telephone conversation with the Welshpool resident was based around the

difficulties faced by those living in a rural setting and the use of purple sacks and

communal collection points The gentleman had suggestions around better

communications and using the refuse crews to deliver regular flyers and information

to assist residents with their recycling

Conclusions

The purpose of the consultation was to seek and capture views from residents about

how easy they found it to recycle certain items of their household waste currently using the kerbside service (glass cardboard paper certain plastics and food)

how full up their wheeled bin was currently when due a fortnightly collection

what if any concerns they may have about a move to a three weekly refuse collection service

how the council might be able to mitigate for certain households who are more likely to produce more waste based on their personal circumstances (large families residents with incontinence waste to dispose of etc

The feedback received from the consultation will help the service

Understand what concerns households have regarding both the recycling and refuse collection service

Work to address said concerns wherever possible through targeted support and visits to householders who want some help or advice clear generic communications and information via the website posters letters and publicity

A note about market research and consultations

When conducting market research companies use a margin of error and confidence level to ensure that their results are robust and representative of the population they are seeking views from (the population of interest) A consultation however isnrsquot market research as people choose to respond and are not contacted using a sampling methodology People self-select so sometimes when conducting a consultation you only hear the views of the people who are either strongly in favour or strongly object to a proposal The silent majority may not have given a view However when we analyse any consultation results we do consider how robust they are in terms of the population of interest Powys has around 60000 households and a population of around 130000 Every household has the refuse collection and recycling service in one form or another so the population of interest is 60000 To get a robust and representative view of the population as a whole - using an market industry calculator ndash we needed over a thousand households to respond to the survey With 1781 householders responding minus the two Town and Community councils (1779) we can be 95 confident that the views given represent those of Powys households as a whole within a margin of error of 3 This means that as in question 3 where we ask people how easy they find it to recycle and 34 state ldquovery easyrdquo we can be sure that if we repeated the survey the results would be between the range of 31 and 37 When conducting consultation exercise Powys County Council works to the National Principles for Public Engagement in Wales httpwwwparticipationcymruorguknational-principles

Resident Profile

1781 householders responded to the online survey

52 had a standard 180 litre wheeled bin currently 11 were on purple sacks 9 had the smaller 120 litre bin 8 were families with two or more children in nappies 6 had incontinence waste and a further 6 were large families consisting of six or more people

Of those providing details over 1000 respondents were female and 500 male Nearly half the respondents (47) were under 45 years of age 40 were aged 45 ndash 64 years and 13 were aged 65+ Just under a quarter (22) said they had a disability

Key Findings

Recycling Service

87 of households found it either veryfairly easy to recycle their waste using the boxes provided for paper plastics glass or food waste

13 of respondents felt it was either fairlyvery difficult

216 respondents gave insights into why they found it difficult to recycle Reasons included recycling boxes being an awkward shape or size or not big enough or needing more boxes boxes being stolen space issues understanding what is and isnrsquot recyclable having to carry the boxes through the house on collection day boxes getting dirty when left out all day collection points being a distance away from home mobility issues to get the boxes to the kerbside etc

The vast majority of householders (91) stated they either did their bit or went above and beyond to ensure they recycled everything they could

Only 7 respondents (1) said they hadnrsquot got time to recycle and couldnrsquot be bothered to do so The remainder (6) said they recycled some items of waste but it was a bit time consuming sometimes

Refuse Collection Service

When asked how full their wheeled bin was currently when due a collection 259 residents (18) said it was either a quarter or half full 235 (17) said their bin was 34 full and 924 respondents (65) said their bin was full up

Of the 197 households on purple sacks the majority (79) put one or two sacks out currently when due a collection 16 placed 3 sacks out and 5 or 9 residents were putting out 4 or more sacks every fortnight

Overall the majority of residents felt they wouldnrsquot be able to manage with the bin they had currently with a move to a three weekly service Two thirds (66) stated they would find it hard 19 of respondents though felt they would manage without any problems and 15 were not too sure at this stage

Similarly 64 of residents on purple sacks felt they wouldnrsquot cope whilst just over a third were confident A number of concerns were expressed by residents on purple sacks around their rurality and fears around rodents and vermin being attracted if bags are stored outside the property Residents who

live in flats were also concerned about storage of the sacks for another week and the issues around smells

Interestingly just over 40 of households with a 120 litre bin currently felt they would cope on a three weekly service even though they had the smallest size bin 17 were not sure and the remaining 40 felt they may need to upgrade to the standard 180 litre bin

Although a number of respondents were interested in a separate nappy collectionincontinence waste service they did not feel that with this in situ that they would be able to cope with their current bin 70 of families with children in nappies were interested in a separate collection scheme but when asked if they felt with this in place it could free up space in their wheeled bin and they could then manage with their current wheeled bin 60 said no The figures who residents with incontinence waste were similar but with a more even split with regard to being able to manage 63 of resident with incontinence waste were interested in a separate collection and of these 49 felt they would be able to cope with their current bin meaning that 51 were not convinced

Question by question findings

When analysing surveys there are different methods of looking at the data given

The county council adopts the method by which you calculate the percentages

based on those who answer the question and discount those that give no view

In Question 1 below 23 respondents choose not to state what resident type they

were This means the total number of people who answered the question was 1758

(the base)

This is then used to work out the percentage of responses for each resident type

Eg For a large family consisting of 6 or more people there were 108 responses To

calculate the percentage response you do the following sum

108 1758 x 100 = 6

This means we can say that 6 of respondents who answered the question were

families consisting of six or more people

The base figure changes based on how many people answer each question in a

survey Although in total 1781 responses were received not every person answered

every question either because it was relevant or they didnrsquot want to

1 Could you firstly look at the list below and tick the description which best describes your household You are

Answer Count Percentage

A large family consisting of 6 or more people (1) 108 6

A family with 2 or more children in nappies (2) 147 8

A household with incontinence waste or similar (3)

106 6

A household who opted for a smaller 120 litre wheeled bin (4)

157 9

A household on purple sacks (5) 197 11

A household which has the standard 180 litre bin (7)

928 53

Other 115 7

BASE FIGURE 1758 100

No answer given + 23

Total sample 1781

The largest percentage of responses came from those residents who were on a standard 180litre wheeled bin 53 of respondents stated they had this type of bin which is to be expected as these are the bins that were delivered if a household hadnrsquot got additional needs or if they hadnrsquot sought the smaller 120litre bin when the fortnightly service was rolled out The 197 respondents who were on purple sacks made up the next highest figure at 11 Based on the rurality of Powys there are a number of properties that require a different approach and purple sacks offer an alternative to a wheeled bin People living in flats also receive purple sacks The 115 people who had chosen to state ldquootherrdquo when asked for their household type included families who had five people in them families with one child in nappies and some who had visiting grandchildren in nappies Q2 Where do you live Please provide the first 3 or 4 letters of your postcode

1777 postcodes were given which showed that on the whole responses had been received from across the county from Ystradgynlais through to Llanfair Caerinion and Machynlleth to Knighton and Presteigne

Q3 Firstly wed like to know how easy is it for your household to sort your food waste plastics cans glass cardboard and paper ready for the weekly recycling collection

Answer Count Percentage

Very easy 610 34

Easy 947 53

Fairly difficult 155 9

Very difficult 64 4

BASE FIGURE 1776 100

No answer given 5

Total sample 1781

Two follow up questions (Q3a and Q3b) were asked to the 219 respondents who answered fairly or very difficult to Q3

Q3a Please tell us what makes it difficult for you to recycle 216 respondents out of the 219 respondents gave their reasons These included

recycling boxes being an awkward shape or size

boxes being not big enough to hold all the recyclables people had to recycle

people needing more boxes and not knowing how to get them

boxes being stolen

space issues to store the boxes

understanding what is and isnrsquot recyclable

having to carry the boxes through the house on collection day

boxes getting dirty when left out all day

collection points being a distance away from a personrsquos home

mobility issues that people faced in getting the boxes to the kerbside

A full appendix of all the 216 comments received is available on request Some comments

are listed below

We are a top floor flat with limited space for the 3 boxes then I have to put the

boxes out on collection day which are barely full most weeks and so are usually

only put out once a month or so Id like to recycle more but since you took the

wheelie recycle bins away its become much more of a pain than it should be

The recycling itself is easy but the use of recycling boxes is inadequate for the

amount of recycling we undertake We are a household that recycles everything

that can be recycled but would be assisted by smaller wheeled bins for paper

plastic etc Also due to mobility difficulties is difficult to carry boxes to the waste

pickup point

I have problems with mobility and have steps in and out of property and up the side

of the house making it difficult I suffer with arthritis and it hurts my joints

constantly going to the bins

Live up a lane 200 yards long poor surface have to take bins to bottom of

land and have only one leg and am wheelchair bound

The boxes provided are terrible and definitely need improving Nowhere

to store them wheelie bins would be better with smaller stackable boxes

for indoors

Q3b The Councils Waste Awareness Advisors visit households to help them look at their waste and offer some support and advice on how to recycle more or avoid products with lots of packaging Would you like some help on what you can and cant recycle so you can free up space in your wheeled bin ahead of a three weekly collection service

186 respondents out of the 219 answered this question with 14 saying they may like some help 172 said they didnrsquot want a Waste Awareness Adviserrsquos help However on closer scrutiny from the 14 who expressed an interest 11 people went on to fill out the next question which asked for contact details Of these 11 only 8 respondents actually left their details The other 3 respondents had suggested an alternative way for the council to provide information This included using our website and writing to people One respondent said ldquoWritten or website advice in much greater detail is required with specific examples eg Philadelphia cheese topsrdquo

Answer Count

Yes 14

No 172

No answer 33

Total 219

Q3c Which of the following best describes your household type in terms of your approach to recycling

Overwhelmingly 90 of residents feel that they are recycling what they can from their household waste using the weekly kerbside service for glass plastics papercardboard and food waste Just over 90 stated that they were either lsquoavidrsquo recyclers who did all they can or they did their bit and recycled the vast majority of their waste (691 and 107 respectively) Less than 1 (7 respondents) said they put everything in their wheeled bin irrespective of whether or not it could be recycled and 3 (48 respondents) felt that it was the councilrsquos job to collect rubbish and they shouldnrsquot have to recycle

Answer Count Percentage

Avid recyclers who separate everything we can wash it and put it the boxes provided

863 50

A household that does their bit and recycles the vast majority of waste but slips up sometimes and could do a bit more

691 40

A household that recycles some items of waste but not others as itrsquos too much efforttime consuming

107 6

A household that puts everything in their wheeled bin or purple sack ndash wersquove not got time to recycle everything and canrsquot be bothered to do so

7 Less than 1 (04)

A household that feels we pay our council tax and thus shouldnrsquot have to recycle it as well Thatrsquos the councilrsquos job

48 3

BASE (those that answered the question)

1716 100

No answer 65

Total sample 1781

Q4 On average how full would you say your wheeled bin is currently when you are due a collection

Answer Count Percentage

A quarter full (25) 104 7

Half full (50) 155 11

Series1

0

200

400

600

800

Avid recyclersDo my bit

Wheeled binCouncils role

691

1077

48

Recycling Type

Three quarters full (75) 235 17

Full up (100) 916 65

BASE 1410 100

No answer 371

Total sample 1781

The table above shows that nearly two thirds of respondents said that their wheeled bin was currently full up when they were due a collection Just under a fifth said their bin was three quarters full Interestingly when you look at the total number of respondents per household type against those that said their bin was full up on collection day it is clear that the vast majority fall into either the large family or the families with two or more children in nappies categories In the table on the next page 100 out of the 108 large families who answered the survey (93) stated their wheeled bin was full up when due a collection on the current fortnightly service whilst 131 out of the 147 families who had two or more children in nappies (89) said their bin was full up too This shows a clear need for additional capacity when the council moves to three weekly collections for these particular households Similarly 80 of residents who have incontinence waste to dispose of were in the same situation Conversely only around a third of householders (38) who chose to have the smallest wheeled bin possible (the 120litre size) said theirs was full up once a fortnight suggesting that their non-recyclable waste must be very minimal For those who had a standard size 180 litre capacity wheeled bin 58 said it was full

HouseholdBin type Total no of responses

Number who felt their bin was 100 full when due a collection

Large family 108 100

2+ more children in nappies 147 131

Incontinence waste to dispose of 106 85

120 litre bin (small wheeled bin) 157 59

180 litre bin (standard size) 928 539

Total number of households who identified themselves into the categories given

1446 914

The chart here shows where respondents with a 120 litre bin live

Note Residents with purple sacks were not asked this question but a similar question to try and gauge how many bags they were putting out on a fortnightly basis This explains why the total figure given in the chart is 1446 as 197 residents stated they were on purple sacks and the remainder (138) didnrsquot choose a category ndash they chose lsquootherrsquo to describe their household

Q4a When we go to a three weekly rubbish collection do you think yoursquoll be able to manage with the bin yoursquove got

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 263 19

Not sure 217 15

No 924 66

BASE 1404 100

No answer 377

Total sample 1781

In total 1404 respondents out of a possible 1446 who had stated their household type and thus had a wheeled bin of some description answered this follow up question about whether they thought they could manage with the bin they had when the council moved to a three weekly service The table above shows that just under 20 (a fifth) thought they would manage 15 were not sure at this stage and two thirds or 66 didnrsquot think they could manage with their current wheeled bin Not surprisingly 818 of the 924 respondents shown in the above table had stated that their bin was currently full up when they were due a fortnightly collection On this basis itrsquos not surprising that they would feel that there was no more room in their bin for another weekrsquos worth of waste and thus wouldnrsquot manage Again the results showed that predominantly those feeling they

1910

27

3 1 6 3 5 3 1 2 5 1 19

224 4 2

10 11 7 1

157

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

12

0 li

tre

bin

byhellip

LD1

LD2

LD3

LD4

LD5

LD6

LD7

LD8

HR

3

HR

5

NP

8

SA9

SA1

0

SY1

0

SY1

5

SY1

6

SY1

7

SY1

8

SY1

9

SY2

0

SY2

1

SY2

2

No

po

stco

de

Tota

l

Respondents with a 120 litre bin by postcode

wouldnrsquot cope were large families families with children in nappies and those with incontinence waste to dispose of However 473 residents who currently have a standard 180litre bin also felt they wouldnrsquot be able to cope Interestingly there were five respondents who although theyrsquod stated that their 180litre bin was full up when due a collection in the previous question had perhaps reconsidered what they recycled and what they put in their wheeled bin currently because they answered lsquoyesrsquo they would manage on a three weekly cycle No other resident type who had stated their wheeled bin was already full had done so although 55 residents with a 180 litre bin had chosen lsquonot surersquo as their option suggesting that they would reserve judgement and see how a three weekly service worked for them in practice Q4b On average how many purple sacks do you put out currently on the fortnightly service 197 respondents identified themselves as being on purple sacks rather than having a wheeled bin There are a number of reasons why householders are either given or request this alternative provision Predominantly it can be because they donrsquot have space for a wheeled bin they live in a flat they live on a steep incline so a wheeled bin isnrsquot suitable or they live in a rural setting and have a shared residual waste collection point (for some people this can be down a track so in essence itrsquos not possible for a refuse lorry to get down to a property and equally residents wouldnrsquot want to attempt to wheel a bin up to said collection point

As can be seen in the bar chart above the vast majority of the 197 respondents put out just or two bags a fortnight Only 3 people said they tended to put out more than four bags a fortnight

Series10

50

100

150

200

1 2 3 4 4+ No ans Total

72 77

316 3 8

197

No of purple bags put out for collection per fortnight

Q4c When we go three weekly do you think yoursquoll manage as you are doing currently 189 out of the 197 on purple sacks responded to this follow up question with just over a third (37) stating yes they would manage but 63 feeling they wouldnrsquot

The next series of questions focused on the different household types and what the council was considering in terms of mitigations and extra capacity Q5 For large families consisting of six people or more you should currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly if you couldnrsquot fit all your non-recyclable waste into the bin we are considering the following Please state which you would prefer

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 4

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 34

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 12

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 52

Total 102

Out of the 108 residents who stated they were a large family 102 answered this question Overall it appears that for residents with a 180 litre bin the preference was to swap to a bigger 240litre bin Equally those that were already on a 240litrre bin would rather have an additional smaller 120litre bin However purple sacks were the preferred choice for some but the numbers were lower Q6 For families with 2 or more children in nappies you may currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly we are considering a free nappy collection scheme (frequency to be determined but likely to be weekly or fortnightly)

37

63

of respondents on purple sacks

Yes No

which would allow you to dispose of your nappies and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste Would this help 147 respondents had stated that they were in the position of having two or more children in nappies currently 139 of them chose to answer this question 70 felt a free and additional nappy collection service would be a help

The same respondents were then asked a follow up question Q6a If there was a nappy collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks Five of the 139 respondents who answered Q6 chose not to answer this follow up question leaving 134 responses The results showed that 60 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage with their current bin and an extra nappy collection service 40 felt they would be able to manage with six householders also happy to consider swapping back from a 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 48 36

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

6 4

No 80 60

Total 134 100

Finally the same respondents (families with 2 or more children in nappies) were asked one more question

0

20

40

60

80

100

Yes No

70

30

Chart Title

Q6b If the nappy service isnrsquot deemed viable for Powys then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 6

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 42

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 24

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 47

Total 119

119 families answered this final question As was the case for the larger families the preference for those with a 180litre bin was clearly to move to a 240litre wheeled bin instead Those families who were already on the larger bin were more likely to want an extra 120litre bin if there were no nappy collection scheme on offer but 24 did say theyrsquod prefer a roll of purple sacks instead Q7 For households where someone has incontinence waste or similar eg incontinence pads or colostomy bags you may have either a 180litre (standard size) or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly wersquod like to be able to offer a free incontinence wastenappy collection scheme (frequency to be agreed but likely to be weekly or fortnightly) This would allow you to dispose of some of your waste and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste (This scheme would not include colostomy bags) Would this help 106 residents stated they had incontinence waste to dispose of However only 85 choose to answer this first specific question about the proposals around three weekly collections 56 were interested in a free service whilst 29 were not

The same respondents were then asked a similar question as those families with children in nappies

56

29

Interest in incontinence collection scheme

Yes No

Q7a If there was a collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks One more person choose to answer this question so 86 respondents gave a view The results showed that 50 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage but 50 did Looking at the 50 who felt confident 10 of these residents said they were happy to consider swapping back from their current 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 34 40

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

9 10

No 43 50

Total 86 100

Q7b If the service isnrsquot deemed viable then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household 81 out of the 86 respondents who had answered the previous question gave a view on what might work best for them Again there appears to be a preference by residents for an extra bin rather than purple sacks

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 28

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 27

Total 81

Q8 For households who opted for a 120litre bin there is an option to swap to a bigger 180litre bin or to stay as you are if you felt you didnrsquot have much non-recyclable waste to dispose of Which would be your preferred option 157 residents had identified themselves as having a 120litre bin which is the smallest wheeled bin available 144 answered this question 57 were happy to stay on the 120litre bin they had already compared to 43 who wanted to swap to a 180litre bin when the council moved to a three weekly collection

Answer Count Percentage

Stick with the 120litre bin 82

Swap to a 180 litre bin 62

Total 144

Q10 Having considered your household situation and the plans being put forward do you have any major concerns about a change to a three weekly rubbish collection service

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 1358 80

No 336 20

Total 1694 100

This question was asked of all respondents 1694 out of the 1781 respondents answered this question The vast majority (80) had some concerns about the move to a three weekly refuse collection service and these concerns related to a number of issues Residents were asked to give details Q10a The top five concerns were

potential smell of waste after three weeks

vermin

fly tipping

capacity issues re storage andor more boxes

communications and information re- recycling

Q10b What about moving to a monthly rubbish collection service Would

you have any objections if you could store your non-recyclable waste in a

big enough bin

Respondents were given the choice of four answers Two were objecting to a move to four weekly and two were supporting this 1683 responses were received for this question Just under a fifth (19) felt a move to a monthly collection service either now or after the three weekly service had been rolled out for a while would not cause them a problem However 81 did object

Answer Count Percentage

No I wouldnrsquot object It makes sense to go monthly and make the savings now rather than going 3 weekly and then monthly

173 10

No I wouldnrsquot object Irsquod be happy to go three weekly first and then move to a monthly collection over time

145 9

Yes I do object I think expecting households to wait three weeks for a collection is too long ndash savings or no savings Find them elsewhere

626 37

Yes I do object I think our recycling and rubbish collection service are the things that council tax payers can see for their money and going monthly isnrsquot acceptable

739 44

Total 1683 100

Q11 If you have any final comments or suggestions about recyclingrubbish

collections that yoursquod like to make please do so here

Over a thousand comments were received These comments were quite varied and

ranged from residents objecting per se to three weekly collections to some calls for

the council to get much tougher and fine people for not recycling their waste

There were comments that more communications information and advice was

needed to help residents understand what can and canrsquot be recycled and why we are

no longer taking the softer type plastic wrappings or bags This issue about

educating the public and helping them understand more about why certain decisions

are taken and what happens to the waste that goes to be recycled also came up in

the focus groups held in Presteigne in particular

There were some concerns about the potential smell of waste left for three weeks in

a wheeled bin ndash in particular things like pet waste nappies sanitary waste and dog

faeces which is generally put into wheeled bins There were also concerns about

flytipping

Some respondents called for the council to lobby the Welsh and Westminster

governmentrsquos about the cuts to funding and also to lobby and put pressure onto

manufacturers who produce a lot of unnecessary packaging

Other Responses

A further 20+ comments were received from residents via their local councillor from

a town and community council on behalf of their residents or from residents who

either emailed the council via the generic web site or a direct email address or who

rang to speak to an officer

These comments were all logged and analysed The majority resonated with the

views and concerns given by the wider sample and included comments on flytipping

health rats the impact on more urban towns confusion re a 3 weekly collection

cycle lack of garden waste collection storage and space issues operatives role in

keeping streets clean post a collection and comments regarding council tax and

value for money One resident suggested we consider electricity generation as in a

waste to energy plant and another request was made around better promotion and

communications regarding the whole reduce reuse and recycle ethos

Focus Groups

Some focus groups were also held in Presteige and Ystradgynlais with members of

the countyrsquos citizens panel to find out their views and concerns Presteigne

residents had been part of a Welsh Government project called Zero Waste a few

years ago and the majority had a 120 litre bin or purple sacks Residents in

Ystradgynlais were the first to receive the kerbside recycling service A focus group

for Welshpool was organised but only one person was able to attend so a telephone

interview was conducted instead with this resident The full findings will be included

in the final report but are summed up here

Presteigne focus group members were not overly concerned about moving to a three

weekly service but wanted to see better information advice and communications

around why we did and didnrsquot take certain materials and what residents can and

canrsquot recycle using the kerbside boxes and other outlets like the community recycling

sites and the household waste recycling centres They wanted Powys to promote

and make recycling as easy as possible They thought that the council should

assume people could cope with three weekly unless they stated otherwise and

thought residents should try the new service first and then be assessed if they

couldnrsquot manage with the bin they had They thought more could be done at

community recycling sites to allow residents to take other things there for recycling

Batteries and small electrical products were mentioned

Ystradgynlais focus group members felt it was easy to recycle overall but the boxes

were a bit cumbersome and some wanted more as theirs were full up Crews were

praised There were concerns expressed around communal bins for residents in

flats These were full up very quickly and perhaps used by other residents other than

those living in the flats to dispose of extra waste Storage was an issue for those

living in smaller homes and flats and the issue about getting older and putting out

heavy bins and boxes was expressed People felt they were happy to do their bit to

recycle but some families would struggle and need help and extra capacity

The telephone conversation with the Welshpool resident was based around the

difficulties faced by those living in a rural setting and the use of purple sacks and

communal collection points The gentleman had suggestions around better

communications and using the refuse crews to deliver regular flyers and information

to assist residents with their recycling

Conclusions

The purpose of the consultation was to seek and capture views from residents about

how easy they found it to recycle certain items of their household waste currently using the kerbside service (glass cardboard paper certain plastics and food)

how full up their wheeled bin was currently when due a fortnightly collection

what if any concerns they may have about a move to a three weekly refuse collection service

how the council might be able to mitigate for certain households who are more likely to produce more waste based on their personal circumstances (large families residents with incontinence waste to dispose of etc

The feedback received from the consultation will help the service

Understand what concerns households have regarding both the recycling and refuse collection service

Work to address said concerns wherever possible through targeted support and visits to householders who want some help or advice clear generic communications and information via the website posters letters and publicity

A note about market research and consultations

When conducting market research companies use a margin of error and confidence level to ensure that their results are robust and representative of the population they are seeking views from (the population of interest) A consultation however isnrsquot market research as people choose to respond and are not contacted using a sampling methodology People self-select so sometimes when conducting a consultation you only hear the views of the people who are either strongly in favour or strongly object to a proposal The silent majority may not have given a view However when we analyse any consultation results we do consider how robust they are in terms of the population of interest Powys has around 60000 households and a population of around 130000 Every household has the refuse collection and recycling service in one form or another so the population of interest is 60000 To get a robust and representative view of the population as a whole - using an market industry calculator ndash we needed over a thousand households to respond to the survey With 1781 householders responding minus the two Town and Community councils (1779) we can be 95 confident that the views given represent those of Powys households as a whole within a margin of error of 3 This means that as in question 3 where we ask people how easy they find it to recycle and 34 state ldquovery easyrdquo we can be sure that if we repeated the survey the results would be between the range of 31 and 37 When conducting consultation exercise Powys County Council works to the National Principles for Public Engagement in Wales httpwwwparticipationcymruorguknational-principles

live in flats were also concerned about storage of the sacks for another week and the issues around smells

Interestingly just over 40 of households with a 120 litre bin currently felt they would cope on a three weekly service even though they had the smallest size bin 17 were not sure and the remaining 40 felt they may need to upgrade to the standard 180 litre bin

Although a number of respondents were interested in a separate nappy collectionincontinence waste service they did not feel that with this in situ that they would be able to cope with their current bin 70 of families with children in nappies were interested in a separate collection scheme but when asked if they felt with this in place it could free up space in their wheeled bin and they could then manage with their current wheeled bin 60 said no The figures who residents with incontinence waste were similar but with a more even split with regard to being able to manage 63 of resident with incontinence waste were interested in a separate collection and of these 49 felt they would be able to cope with their current bin meaning that 51 were not convinced

Question by question findings

When analysing surveys there are different methods of looking at the data given

The county council adopts the method by which you calculate the percentages

based on those who answer the question and discount those that give no view

In Question 1 below 23 respondents choose not to state what resident type they

were This means the total number of people who answered the question was 1758

(the base)

This is then used to work out the percentage of responses for each resident type

Eg For a large family consisting of 6 or more people there were 108 responses To

calculate the percentage response you do the following sum

108 1758 x 100 = 6

This means we can say that 6 of respondents who answered the question were

families consisting of six or more people

The base figure changes based on how many people answer each question in a

survey Although in total 1781 responses were received not every person answered

every question either because it was relevant or they didnrsquot want to

1 Could you firstly look at the list below and tick the description which best describes your household You are

Answer Count Percentage

A large family consisting of 6 or more people (1) 108 6

A family with 2 or more children in nappies (2) 147 8

A household with incontinence waste or similar (3)

106 6

A household who opted for a smaller 120 litre wheeled bin (4)

157 9

A household on purple sacks (5) 197 11

A household which has the standard 180 litre bin (7)

928 53

Other 115 7

BASE FIGURE 1758 100

No answer given + 23

Total sample 1781

The largest percentage of responses came from those residents who were on a standard 180litre wheeled bin 53 of respondents stated they had this type of bin which is to be expected as these are the bins that were delivered if a household hadnrsquot got additional needs or if they hadnrsquot sought the smaller 120litre bin when the fortnightly service was rolled out The 197 respondents who were on purple sacks made up the next highest figure at 11 Based on the rurality of Powys there are a number of properties that require a different approach and purple sacks offer an alternative to a wheeled bin People living in flats also receive purple sacks The 115 people who had chosen to state ldquootherrdquo when asked for their household type included families who had five people in them families with one child in nappies and some who had visiting grandchildren in nappies Q2 Where do you live Please provide the first 3 or 4 letters of your postcode

1777 postcodes were given which showed that on the whole responses had been received from across the county from Ystradgynlais through to Llanfair Caerinion and Machynlleth to Knighton and Presteigne

Q3 Firstly wed like to know how easy is it for your household to sort your food waste plastics cans glass cardboard and paper ready for the weekly recycling collection

Answer Count Percentage

Very easy 610 34

Easy 947 53

Fairly difficult 155 9

Very difficult 64 4

BASE FIGURE 1776 100

No answer given 5

Total sample 1781

Two follow up questions (Q3a and Q3b) were asked to the 219 respondents who answered fairly or very difficult to Q3

Q3a Please tell us what makes it difficult for you to recycle 216 respondents out of the 219 respondents gave their reasons These included

recycling boxes being an awkward shape or size

boxes being not big enough to hold all the recyclables people had to recycle

people needing more boxes and not knowing how to get them

boxes being stolen

space issues to store the boxes

understanding what is and isnrsquot recyclable

having to carry the boxes through the house on collection day

boxes getting dirty when left out all day

collection points being a distance away from a personrsquos home

mobility issues that people faced in getting the boxes to the kerbside

A full appendix of all the 216 comments received is available on request Some comments

are listed below

We are a top floor flat with limited space for the 3 boxes then I have to put the

boxes out on collection day which are barely full most weeks and so are usually

only put out once a month or so Id like to recycle more but since you took the

wheelie recycle bins away its become much more of a pain than it should be

The recycling itself is easy but the use of recycling boxes is inadequate for the

amount of recycling we undertake We are a household that recycles everything

that can be recycled but would be assisted by smaller wheeled bins for paper

plastic etc Also due to mobility difficulties is difficult to carry boxes to the waste

pickup point

I have problems with mobility and have steps in and out of property and up the side

of the house making it difficult I suffer with arthritis and it hurts my joints

constantly going to the bins

Live up a lane 200 yards long poor surface have to take bins to bottom of

land and have only one leg and am wheelchair bound

The boxes provided are terrible and definitely need improving Nowhere

to store them wheelie bins would be better with smaller stackable boxes

for indoors

Q3b The Councils Waste Awareness Advisors visit households to help them look at their waste and offer some support and advice on how to recycle more or avoid products with lots of packaging Would you like some help on what you can and cant recycle so you can free up space in your wheeled bin ahead of a three weekly collection service

186 respondents out of the 219 answered this question with 14 saying they may like some help 172 said they didnrsquot want a Waste Awareness Adviserrsquos help However on closer scrutiny from the 14 who expressed an interest 11 people went on to fill out the next question which asked for contact details Of these 11 only 8 respondents actually left their details The other 3 respondents had suggested an alternative way for the council to provide information This included using our website and writing to people One respondent said ldquoWritten or website advice in much greater detail is required with specific examples eg Philadelphia cheese topsrdquo

Answer Count

Yes 14

No 172

No answer 33

Total 219

Q3c Which of the following best describes your household type in terms of your approach to recycling

Overwhelmingly 90 of residents feel that they are recycling what they can from their household waste using the weekly kerbside service for glass plastics papercardboard and food waste Just over 90 stated that they were either lsquoavidrsquo recyclers who did all they can or they did their bit and recycled the vast majority of their waste (691 and 107 respectively) Less than 1 (7 respondents) said they put everything in their wheeled bin irrespective of whether or not it could be recycled and 3 (48 respondents) felt that it was the councilrsquos job to collect rubbish and they shouldnrsquot have to recycle

Answer Count Percentage

Avid recyclers who separate everything we can wash it and put it the boxes provided

863 50

A household that does their bit and recycles the vast majority of waste but slips up sometimes and could do a bit more

691 40

A household that recycles some items of waste but not others as itrsquos too much efforttime consuming

107 6

A household that puts everything in their wheeled bin or purple sack ndash wersquove not got time to recycle everything and canrsquot be bothered to do so

7 Less than 1 (04)

A household that feels we pay our council tax and thus shouldnrsquot have to recycle it as well Thatrsquos the councilrsquos job

48 3

BASE (those that answered the question)

1716 100

No answer 65

Total sample 1781

Q4 On average how full would you say your wheeled bin is currently when you are due a collection

Answer Count Percentage

A quarter full (25) 104 7

Half full (50) 155 11

Series1

0

200

400

600

800

Avid recyclersDo my bit

Wheeled binCouncils role

691

1077

48

Recycling Type

Three quarters full (75) 235 17

Full up (100) 916 65

BASE 1410 100

No answer 371

Total sample 1781

The table above shows that nearly two thirds of respondents said that their wheeled bin was currently full up when they were due a collection Just under a fifth said their bin was three quarters full Interestingly when you look at the total number of respondents per household type against those that said their bin was full up on collection day it is clear that the vast majority fall into either the large family or the families with two or more children in nappies categories In the table on the next page 100 out of the 108 large families who answered the survey (93) stated their wheeled bin was full up when due a collection on the current fortnightly service whilst 131 out of the 147 families who had two or more children in nappies (89) said their bin was full up too This shows a clear need for additional capacity when the council moves to three weekly collections for these particular households Similarly 80 of residents who have incontinence waste to dispose of were in the same situation Conversely only around a third of householders (38) who chose to have the smallest wheeled bin possible (the 120litre size) said theirs was full up once a fortnight suggesting that their non-recyclable waste must be very minimal For those who had a standard size 180 litre capacity wheeled bin 58 said it was full

HouseholdBin type Total no of responses

Number who felt their bin was 100 full when due a collection

Large family 108 100

2+ more children in nappies 147 131

Incontinence waste to dispose of 106 85

120 litre bin (small wheeled bin) 157 59

180 litre bin (standard size) 928 539

Total number of households who identified themselves into the categories given

1446 914

The chart here shows where respondents with a 120 litre bin live

Note Residents with purple sacks were not asked this question but a similar question to try and gauge how many bags they were putting out on a fortnightly basis This explains why the total figure given in the chart is 1446 as 197 residents stated they were on purple sacks and the remainder (138) didnrsquot choose a category ndash they chose lsquootherrsquo to describe their household

Q4a When we go to a three weekly rubbish collection do you think yoursquoll be able to manage with the bin yoursquove got

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 263 19

Not sure 217 15

No 924 66

BASE 1404 100

No answer 377

Total sample 1781

In total 1404 respondents out of a possible 1446 who had stated their household type and thus had a wheeled bin of some description answered this follow up question about whether they thought they could manage with the bin they had when the council moved to a three weekly service The table above shows that just under 20 (a fifth) thought they would manage 15 were not sure at this stage and two thirds or 66 didnrsquot think they could manage with their current wheeled bin Not surprisingly 818 of the 924 respondents shown in the above table had stated that their bin was currently full up when they were due a fortnightly collection On this basis itrsquos not surprising that they would feel that there was no more room in their bin for another weekrsquos worth of waste and thus wouldnrsquot manage Again the results showed that predominantly those feeling they

1910

27

3 1 6 3 5 3 1 2 5 1 19

224 4 2

10 11 7 1

157

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

12

0 li

tre

bin

byhellip

LD1

LD2

LD3

LD4

LD5

LD6

LD7

LD8

HR

3

HR

5

NP

8

SA9

SA1

0

SY1

0

SY1

5

SY1

6

SY1

7

SY1

8

SY1

9

SY2

0

SY2

1

SY2

2

No

po

stco

de

Tota

l

Respondents with a 120 litre bin by postcode

wouldnrsquot cope were large families families with children in nappies and those with incontinence waste to dispose of However 473 residents who currently have a standard 180litre bin also felt they wouldnrsquot be able to cope Interestingly there were five respondents who although theyrsquod stated that their 180litre bin was full up when due a collection in the previous question had perhaps reconsidered what they recycled and what they put in their wheeled bin currently because they answered lsquoyesrsquo they would manage on a three weekly cycle No other resident type who had stated their wheeled bin was already full had done so although 55 residents with a 180 litre bin had chosen lsquonot surersquo as their option suggesting that they would reserve judgement and see how a three weekly service worked for them in practice Q4b On average how many purple sacks do you put out currently on the fortnightly service 197 respondents identified themselves as being on purple sacks rather than having a wheeled bin There are a number of reasons why householders are either given or request this alternative provision Predominantly it can be because they donrsquot have space for a wheeled bin they live in a flat they live on a steep incline so a wheeled bin isnrsquot suitable or they live in a rural setting and have a shared residual waste collection point (for some people this can be down a track so in essence itrsquos not possible for a refuse lorry to get down to a property and equally residents wouldnrsquot want to attempt to wheel a bin up to said collection point

As can be seen in the bar chart above the vast majority of the 197 respondents put out just or two bags a fortnight Only 3 people said they tended to put out more than four bags a fortnight

Series10

50

100

150

200

1 2 3 4 4+ No ans Total

72 77

316 3 8

197

No of purple bags put out for collection per fortnight

Q4c When we go three weekly do you think yoursquoll manage as you are doing currently 189 out of the 197 on purple sacks responded to this follow up question with just over a third (37) stating yes they would manage but 63 feeling they wouldnrsquot

The next series of questions focused on the different household types and what the council was considering in terms of mitigations and extra capacity Q5 For large families consisting of six people or more you should currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly if you couldnrsquot fit all your non-recyclable waste into the bin we are considering the following Please state which you would prefer

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 4

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 34

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 12

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 52

Total 102

Out of the 108 residents who stated they were a large family 102 answered this question Overall it appears that for residents with a 180 litre bin the preference was to swap to a bigger 240litre bin Equally those that were already on a 240litrre bin would rather have an additional smaller 120litre bin However purple sacks were the preferred choice for some but the numbers were lower Q6 For families with 2 or more children in nappies you may currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly we are considering a free nappy collection scheme (frequency to be determined but likely to be weekly or fortnightly)

37

63

of respondents on purple sacks

Yes No

which would allow you to dispose of your nappies and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste Would this help 147 respondents had stated that they were in the position of having two or more children in nappies currently 139 of them chose to answer this question 70 felt a free and additional nappy collection service would be a help

The same respondents were then asked a follow up question Q6a If there was a nappy collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks Five of the 139 respondents who answered Q6 chose not to answer this follow up question leaving 134 responses The results showed that 60 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage with their current bin and an extra nappy collection service 40 felt they would be able to manage with six householders also happy to consider swapping back from a 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 48 36

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

6 4

No 80 60

Total 134 100

Finally the same respondents (families with 2 or more children in nappies) were asked one more question

0

20

40

60

80

100

Yes No

70

30

Chart Title

Q6b If the nappy service isnrsquot deemed viable for Powys then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 6

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 42

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 24

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 47

Total 119

119 families answered this final question As was the case for the larger families the preference for those with a 180litre bin was clearly to move to a 240litre wheeled bin instead Those families who were already on the larger bin were more likely to want an extra 120litre bin if there were no nappy collection scheme on offer but 24 did say theyrsquod prefer a roll of purple sacks instead Q7 For households where someone has incontinence waste or similar eg incontinence pads or colostomy bags you may have either a 180litre (standard size) or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly wersquod like to be able to offer a free incontinence wastenappy collection scheme (frequency to be agreed but likely to be weekly or fortnightly) This would allow you to dispose of some of your waste and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste (This scheme would not include colostomy bags) Would this help 106 residents stated they had incontinence waste to dispose of However only 85 choose to answer this first specific question about the proposals around three weekly collections 56 were interested in a free service whilst 29 were not

The same respondents were then asked a similar question as those families with children in nappies

56

29

Interest in incontinence collection scheme

Yes No

Q7a If there was a collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks One more person choose to answer this question so 86 respondents gave a view The results showed that 50 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage but 50 did Looking at the 50 who felt confident 10 of these residents said they were happy to consider swapping back from their current 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 34 40

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

9 10

No 43 50

Total 86 100

Q7b If the service isnrsquot deemed viable then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household 81 out of the 86 respondents who had answered the previous question gave a view on what might work best for them Again there appears to be a preference by residents for an extra bin rather than purple sacks

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 28

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 27

Total 81

Q8 For households who opted for a 120litre bin there is an option to swap to a bigger 180litre bin or to stay as you are if you felt you didnrsquot have much non-recyclable waste to dispose of Which would be your preferred option 157 residents had identified themselves as having a 120litre bin which is the smallest wheeled bin available 144 answered this question 57 were happy to stay on the 120litre bin they had already compared to 43 who wanted to swap to a 180litre bin when the council moved to a three weekly collection

Answer Count Percentage

Stick with the 120litre bin 82

Swap to a 180 litre bin 62

Total 144

Q10 Having considered your household situation and the plans being put forward do you have any major concerns about a change to a three weekly rubbish collection service

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 1358 80

No 336 20

Total 1694 100

This question was asked of all respondents 1694 out of the 1781 respondents answered this question The vast majority (80) had some concerns about the move to a three weekly refuse collection service and these concerns related to a number of issues Residents were asked to give details Q10a The top five concerns were

potential smell of waste after three weeks

vermin

fly tipping

capacity issues re storage andor more boxes

communications and information re- recycling

Q10b What about moving to a monthly rubbish collection service Would

you have any objections if you could store your non-recyclable waste in a

big enough bin

Respondents were given the choice of four answers Two were objecting to a move to four weekly and two were supporting this 1683 responses were received for this question Just under a fifth (19) felt a move to a monthly collection service either now or after the three weekly service had been rolled out for a while would not cause them a problem However 81 did object

Answer Count Percentage

No I wouldnrsquot object It makes sense to go monthly and make the savings now rather than going 3 weekly and then monthly

173 10

No I wouldnrsquot object Irsquod be happy to go three weekly first and then move to a monthly collection over time

145 9

Yes I do object I think expecting households to wait three weeks for a collection is too long ndash savings or no savings Find them elsewhere

626 37

Yes I do object I think our recycling and rubbish collection service are the things that council tax payers can see for their money and going monthly isnrsquot acceptable

739 44

Total 1683 100

Q11 If you have any final comments or suggestions about recyclingrubbish

collections that yoursquod like to make please do so here

Over a thousand comments were received These comments were quite varied and

ranged from residents objecting per se to three weekly collections to some calls for

the council to get much tougher and fine people for not recycling their waste

There were comments that more communications information and advice was

needed to help residents understand what can and canrsquot be recycled and why we are

no longer taking the softer type plastic wrappings or bags This issue about

educating the public and helping them understand more about why certain decisions

are taken and what happens to the waste that goes to be recycled also came up in

the focus groups held in Presteigne in particular

There were some concerns about the potential smell of waste left for three weeks in

a wheeled bin ndash in particular things like pet waste nappies sanitary waste and dog

faeces which is generally put into wheeled bins There were also concerns about

flytipping

Some respondents called for the council to lobby the Welsh and Westminster

governmentrsquos about the cuts to funding and also to lobby and put pressure onto

manufacturers who produce a lot of unnecessary packaging

Other Responses

A further 20+ comments were received from residents via their local councillor from

a town and community council on behalf of their residents or from residents who

either emailed the council via the generic web site or a direct email address or who

rang to speak to an officer

These comments were all logged and analysed The majority resonated with the

views and concerns given by the wider sample and included comments on flytipping

health rats the impact on more urban towns confusion re a 3 weekly collection

cycle lack of garden waste collection storage and space issues operatives role in

keeping streets clean post a collection and comments regarding council tax and

value for money One resident suggested we consider electricity generation as in a

waste to energy plant and another request was made around better promotion and

communications regarding the whole reduce reuse and recycle ethos

Focus Groups

Some focus groups were also held in Presteige and Ystradgynlais with members of

the countyrsquos citizens panel to find out their views and concerns Presteigne

residents had been part of a Welsh Government project called Zero Waste a few

years ago and the majority had a 120 litre bin or purple sacks Residents in

Ystradgynlais were the first to receive the kerbside recycling service A focus group

for Welshpool was organised but only one person was able to attend so a telephone

interview was conducted instead with this resident The full findings will be included

in the final report but are summed up here

Presteigne focus group members were not overly concerned about moving to a three

weekly service but wanted to see better information advice and communications

around why we did and didnrsquot take certain materials and what residents can and

canrsquot recycle using the kerbside boxes and other outlets like the community recycling

sites and the household waste recycling centres They wanted Powys to promote

and make recycling as easy as possible They thought that the council should

assume people could cope with three weekly unless they stated otherwise and

thought residents should try the new service first and then be assessed if they

couldnrsquot manage with the bin they had They thought more could be done at

community recycling sites to allow residents to take other things there for recycling

Batteries and small electrical products were mentioned

Ystradgynlais focus group members felt it was easy to recycle overall but the boxes

were a bit cumbersome and some wanted more as theirs were full up Crews were

praised There were concerns expressed around communal bins for residents in

flats These were full up very quickly and perhaps used by other residents other than

those living in the flats to dispose of extra waste Storage was an issue for those

living in smaller homes and flats and the issue about getting older and putting out

heavy bins and boxes was expressed People felt they were happy to do their bit to

recycle but some families would struggle and need help and extra capacity

The telephone conversation with the Welshpool resident was based around the

difficulties faced by those living in a rural setting and the use of purple sacks and

communal collection points The gentleman had suggestions around better

communications and using the refuse crews to deliver regular flyers and information

to assist residents with their recycling

Conclusions

The purpose of the consultation was to seek and capture views from residents about

how easy they found it to recycle certain items of their household waste currently using the kerbside service (glass cardboard paper certain plastics and food)

how full up their wheeled bin was currently when due a fortnightly collection

what if any concerns they may have about a move to a three weekly refuse collection service

how the council might be able to mitigate for certain households who are more likely to produce more waste based on their personal circumstances (large families residents with incontinence waste to dispose of etc

The feedback received from the consultation will help the service

Understand what concerns households have regarding both the recycling and refuse collection service

Work to address said concerns wherever possible through targeted support and visits to householders who want some help or advice clear generic communications and information via the website posters letters and publicity

A note about market research and consultations

When conducting market research companies use a margin of error and confidence level to ensure that their results are robust and representative of the population they are seeking views from (the population of interest) A consultation however isnrsquot market research as people choose to respond and are not contacted using a sampling methodology People self-select so sometimes when conducting a consultation you only hear the views of the people who are either strongly in favour or strongly object to a proposal The silent majority may not have given a view However when we analyse any consultation results we do consider how robust they are in terms of the population of interest Powys has around 60000 households and a population of around 130000 Every household has the refuse collection and recycling service in one form or another so the population of interest is 60000 To get a robust and representative view of the population as a whole - using an market industry calculator ndash we needed over a thousand households to respond to the survey With 1781 householders responding minus the two Town and Community councils (1779) we can be 95 confident that the views given represent those of Powys households as a whole within a margin of error of 3 This means that as in question 3 where we ask people how easy they find it to recycle and 34 state ldquovery easyrdquo we can be sure that if we repeated the survey the results would be between the range of 31 and 37 When conducting consultation exercise Powys County Council works to the National Principles for Public Engagement in Wales httpwwwparticipationcymruorguknational-principles

1 Could you firstly look at the list below and tick the description which best describes your household You are

Answer Count Percentage

A large family consisting of 6 or more people (1) 108 6

A family with 2 or more children in nappies (2) 147 8

A household with incontinence waste or similar (3)

106 6

A household who opted for a smaller 120 litre wheeled bin (4)

157 9

A household on purple sacks (5) 197 11

A household which has the standard 180 litre bin (7)

928 53

Other 115 7

BASE FIGURE 1758 100

No answer given + 23

Total sample 1781

The largest percentage of responses came from those residents who were on a standard 180litre wheeled bin 53 of respondents stated they had this type of bin which is to be expected as these are the bins that were delivered if a household hadnrsquot got additional needs or if they hadnrsquot sought the smaller 120litre bin when the fortnightly service was rolled out The 197 respondents who were on purple sacks made up the next highest figure at 11 Based on the rurality of Powys there are a number of properties that require a different approach and purple sacks offer an alternative to a wheeled bin People living in flats also receive purple sacks The 115 people who had chosen to state ldquootherrdquo when asked for their household type included families who had five people in them families with one child in nappies and some who had visiting grandchildren in nappies Q2 Where do you live Please provide the first 3 or 4 letters of your postcode

1777 postcodes were given which showed that on the whole responses had been received from across the county from Ystradgynlais through to Llanfair Caerinion and Machynlleth to Knighton and Presteigne

Q3 Firstly wed like to know how easy is it for your household to sort your food waste plastics cans glass cardboard and paper ready for the weekly recycling collection

Answer Count Percentage

Very easy 610 34

Easy 947 53

Fairly difficult 155 9

Very difficult 64 4

BASE FIGURE 1776 100

No answer given 5

Total sample 1781

Two follow up questions (Q3a and Q3b) were asked to the 219 respondents who answered fairly or very difficult to Q3

Q3a Please tell us what makes it difficult for you to recycle 216 respondents out of the 219 respondents gave their reasons These included

recycling boxes being an awkward shape or size

boxes being not big enough to hold all the recyclables people had to recycle

people needing more boxes and not knowing how to get them

boxes being stolen

space issues to store the boxes

understanding what is and isnrsquot recyclable

having to carry the boxes through the house on collection day

boxes getting dirty when left out all day

collection points being a distance away from a personrsquos home

mobility issues that people faced in getting the boxes to the kerbside

A full appendix of all the 216 comments received is available on request Some comments

are listed below

We are a top floor flat with limited space for the 3 boxes then I have to put the

boxes out on collection day which are barely full most weeks and so are usually

only put out once a month or so Id like to recycle more but since you took the

wheelie recycle bins away its become much more of a pain than it should be

The recycling itself is easy but the use of recycling boxes is inadequate for the

amount of recycling we undertake We are a household that recycles everything

that can be recycled but would be assisted by smaller wheeled bins for paper

plastic etc Also due to mobility difficulties is difficult to carry boxes to the waste

pickup point

I have problems with mobility and have steps in and out of property and up the side

of the house making it difficult I suffer with arthritis and it hurts my joints

constantly going to the bins

Live up a lane 200 yards long poor surface have to take bins to bottom of

land and have only one leg and am wheelchair bound

The boxes provided are terrible and definitely need improving Nowhere

to store them wheelie bins would be better with smaller stackable boxes

for indoors

Q3b The Councils Waste Awareness Advisors visit households to help them look at their waste and offer some support and advice on how to recycle more or avoid products with lots of packaging Would you like some help on what you can and cant recycle so you can free up space in your wheeled bin ahead of a three weekly collection service

186 respondents out of the 219 answered this question with 14 saying they may like some help 172 said they didnrsquot want a Waste Awareness Adviserrsquos help However on closer scrutiny from the 14 who expressed an interest 11 people went on to fill out the next question which asked for contact details Of these 11 only 8 respondents actually left their details The other 3 respondents had suggested an alternative way for the council to provide information This included using our website and writing to people One respondent said ldquoWritten or website advice in much greater detail is required with specific examples eg Philadelphia cheese topsrdquo

Answer Count

Yes 14

No 172

No answer 33

Total 219

Q3c Which of the following best describes your household type in terms of your approach to recycling

Overwhelmingly 90 of residents feel that they are recycling what they can from their household waste using the weekly kerbside service for glass plastics papercardboard and food waste Just over 90 stated that they were either lsquoavidrsquo recyclers who did all they can or they did their bit and recycled the vast majority of their waste (691 and 107 respectively) Less than 1 (7 respondents) said they put everything in their wheeled bin irrespective of whether or not it could be recycled and 3 (48 respondents) felt that it was the councilrsquos job to collect rubbish and they shouldnrsquot have to recycle

Answer Count Percentage

Avid recyclers who separate everything we can wash it and put it the boxes provided

863 50

A household that does their bit and recycles the vast majority of waste but slips up sometimes and could do a bit more

691 40

A household that recycles some items of waste but not others as itrsquos too much efforttime consuming

107 6

A household that puts everything in their wheeled bin or purple sack ndash wersquove not got time to recycle everything and canrsquot be bothered to do so

7 Less than 1 (04)

A household that feels we pay our council tax and thus shouldnrsquot have to recycle it as well Thatrsquos the councilrsquos job

48 3

BASE (those that answered the question)

1716 100

No answer 65

Total sample 1781

Q4 On average how full would you say your wheeled bin is currently when you are due a collection

Answer Count Percentage

A quarter full (25) 104 7

Half full (50) 155 11

Series1

0

200

400

600

800

Avid recyclersDo my bit

Wheeled binCouncils role

691

1077

48

Recycling Type

Three quarters full (75) 235 17

Full up (100) 916 65

BASE 1410 100

No answer 371

Total sample 1781

The table above shows that nearly two thirds of respondents said that their wheeled bin was currently full up when they were due a collection Just under a fifth said their bin was three quarters full Interestingly when you look at the total number of respondents per household type against those that said their bin was full up on collection day it is clear that the vast majority fall into either the large family or the families with two or more children in nappies categories In the table on the next page 100 out of the 108 large families who answered the survey (93) stated their wheeled bin was full up when due a collection on the current fortnightly service whilst 131 out of the 147 families who had two or more children in nappies (89) said their bin was full up too This shows a clear need for additional capacity when the council moves to three weekly collections for these particular households Similarly 80 of residents who have incontinence waste to dispose of were in the same situation Conversely only around a third of householders (38) who chose to have the smallest wheeled bin possible (the 120litre size) said theirs was full up once a fortnight suggesting that their non-recyclable waste must be very minimal For those who had a standard size 180 litre capacity wheeled bin 58 said it was full

HouseholdBin type Total no of responses

Number who felt their bin was 100 full when due a collection

Large family 108 100

2+ more children in nappies 147 131

Incontinence waste to dispose of 106 85

120 litre bin (small wheeled bin) 157 59

180 litre bin (standard size) 928 539

Total number of households who identified themselves into the categories given

1446 914

The chart here shows where respondents with a 120 litre bin live

Note Residents with purple sacks were not asked this question but a similar question to try and gauge how many bags they were putting out on a fortnightly basis This explains why the total figure given in the chart is 1446 as 197 residents stated they were on purple sacks and the remainder (138) didnrsquot choose a category ndash they chose lsquootherrsquo to describe their household

Q4a When we go to a three weekly rubbish collection do you think yoursquoll be able to manage with the bin yoursquove got

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 263 19

Not sure 217 15

No 924 66

BASE 1404 100

No answer 377

Total sample 1781

In total 1404 respondents out of a possible 1446 who had stated their household type and thus had a wheeled bin of some description answered this follow up question about whether they thought they could manage with the bin they had when the council moved to a three weekly service The table above shows that just under 20 (a fifth) thought they would manage 15 were not sure at this stage and two thirds or 66 didnrsquot think they could manage with their current wheeled bin Not surprisingly 818 of the 924 respondents shown in the above table had stated that their bin was currently full up when they were due a fortnightly collection On this basis itrsquos not surprising that they would feel that there was no more room in their bin for another weekrsquos worth of waste and thus wouldnrsquot manage Again the results showed that predominantly those feeling they

1910

27

3 1 6 3 5 3 1 2 5 1 19

224 4 2

10 11 7 1

157

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

12

0 li

tre

bin

byhellip

LD1

LD2

LD3

LD4

LD5

LD6

LD7

LD8

HR

3

HR

5

NP

8

SA9

SA1

0

SY1

0

SY1

5

SY1

6

SY1

7

SY1

8

SY1

9

SY2

0

SY2

1

SY2

2

No

po

stco

de

Tota

l

Respondents with a 120 litre bin by postcode

wouldnrsquot cope were large families families with children in nappies and those with incontinence waste to dispose of However 473 residents who currently have a standard 180litre bin also felt they wouldnrsquot be able to cope Interestingly there were five respondents who although theyrsquod stated that their 180litre bin was full up when due a collection in the previous question had perhaps reconsidered what they recycled and what they put in their wheeled bin currently because they answered lsquoyesrsquo they would manage on a three weekly cycle No other resident type who had stated their wheeled bin was already full had done so although 55 residents with a 180 litre bin had chosen lsquonot surersquo as their option suggesting that they would reserve judgement and see how a three weekly service worked for them in practice Q4b On average how many purple sacks do you put out currently on the fortnightly service 197 respondents identified themselves as being on purple sacks rather than having a wheeled bin There are a number of reasons why householders are either given or request this alternative provision Predominantly it can be because they donrsquot have space for a wheeled bin they live in a flat they live on a steep incline so a wheeled bin isnrsquot suitable or they live in a rural setting and have a shared residual waste collection point (for some people this can be down a track so in essence itrsquos not possible for a refuse lorry to get down to a property and equally residents wouldnrsquot want to attempt to wheel a bin up to said collection point

As can be seen in the bar chart above the vast majority of the 197 respondents put out just or two bags a fortnight Only 3 people said they tended to put out more than four bags a fortnight

Series10

50

100

150

200

1 2 3 4 4+ No ans Total

72 77

316 3 8

197

No of purple bags put out for collection per fortnight

Q4c When we go three weekly do you think yoursquoll manage as you are doing currently 189 out of the 197 on purple sacks responded to this follow up question with just over a third (37) stating yes they would manage but 63 feeling they wouldnrsquot

The next series of questions focused on the different household types and what the council was considering in terms of mitigations and extra capacity Q5 For large families consisting of six people or more you should currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly if you couldnrsquot fit all your non-recyclable waste into the bin we are considering the following Please state which you would prefer

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 4

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 34

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 12

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 52

Total 102

Out of the 108 residents who stated they were a large family 102 answered this question Overall it appears that for residents with a 180 litre bin the preference was to swap to a bigger 240litre bin Equally those that were already on a 240litrre bin would rather have an additional smaller 120litre bin However purple sacks were the preferred choice for some but the numbers were lower Q6 For families with 2 or more children in nappies you may currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly we are considering a free nappy collection scheme (frequency to be determined but likely to be weekly or fortnightly)

37

63

of respondents on purple sacks

Yes No

which would allow you to dispose of your nappies and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste Would this help 147 respondents had stated that they were in the position of having two or more children in nappies currently 139 of them chose to answer this question 70 felt a free and additional nappy collection service would be a help

The same respondents were then asked a follow up question Q6a If there was a nappy collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks Five of the 139 respondents who answered Q6 chose not to answer this follow up question leaving 134 responses The results showed that 60 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage with their current bin and an extra nappy collection service 40 felt they would be able to manage with six householders also happy to consider swapping back from a 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 48 36

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

6 4

No 80 60

Total 134 100

Finally the same respondents (families with 2 or more children in nappies) were asked one more question

0

20

40

60

80

100

Yes No

70

30

Chart Title

Q6b If the nappy service isnrsquot deemed viable for Powys then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 6

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 42

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 24

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 47

Total 119

119 families answered this final question As was the case for the larger families the preference for those with a 180litre bin was clearly to move to a 240litre wheeled bin instead Those families who were already on the larger bin were more likely to want an extra 120litre bin if there were no nappy collection scheme on offer but 24 did say theyrsquod prefer a roll of purple sacks instead Q7 For households where someone has incontinence waste or similar eg incontinence pads or colostomy bags you may have either a 180litre (standard size) or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly wersquod like to be able to offer a free incontinence wastenappy collection scheme (frequency to be agreed but likely to be weekly or fortnightly) This would allow you to dispose of some of your waste and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste (This scheme would not include colostomy bags) Would this help 106 residents stated they had incontinence waste to dispose of However only 85 choose to answer this first specific question about the proposals around three weekly collections 56 were interested in a free service whilst 29 were not

The same respondents were then asked a similar question as those families with children in nappies

56

29

Interest in incontinence collection scheme

Yes No

Q7a If there was a collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks One more person choose to answer this question so 86 respondents gave a view The results showed that 50 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage but 50 did Looking at the 50 who felt confident 10 of these residents said they were happy to consider swapping back from their current 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 34 40

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

9 10

No 43 50

Total 86 100

Q7b If the service isnrsquot deemed viable then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household 81 out of the 86 respondents who had answered the previous question gave a view on what might work best for them Again there appears to be a preference by residents for an extra bin rather than purple sacks

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 28

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 27

Total 81

Q8 For households who opted for a 120litre bin there is an option to swap to a bigger 180litre bin or to stay as you are if you felt you didnrsquot have much non-recyclable waste to dispose of Which would be your preferred option 157 residents had identified themselves as having a 120litre bin which is the smallest wheeled bin available 144 answered this question 57 were happy to stay on the 120litre bin they had already compared to 43 who wanted to swap to a 180litre bin when the council moved to a three weekly collection

Answer Count Percentage

Stick with the 120litre bin 82

Swap to a 180 litre bin 62

Total 144

Q10 Having considered your household situation and the plans being put forward do you have any major concerns about a change to a three weekly rubbish collection service

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 1358 80

No 336 20

Total 1694 100

This question was asked of all respondents 1694 out of the 1781 respondents answered this question The vast majority (80) had some concerns about the move to a three weekly refuse collection service and these concerns related to a number of issues Residents were asked to give details Q10a The top five concerns were

potential smell of waste after three weeks

vermin

fly tipping

capacity issues re storage andor more boxes

communications and information re- recycling

Q10b What about moving to a monthly rubbish collection service Would

you have any objections if you could store your non-recyclable waste in a

big enough bin

Respondents were given the choice of four answers Two were objecting to a move to four weekly and two were supporting this 1683 responses were received for this question Just under a fifth (19) felt a move to a monthly collection service either now or after the three weekly service had been rolled out for a while would not cause them a problem However 81 did object

Answer Count Percentage

No I wouldnrsquot object It makes sense to go monthly and make the savings now rather than going 3 weekly and then monthly

173 10

No I wouldnrsquot object Irsquod be happy to go three weekly first and then move to a monthly collection over time

145 9

Yes I do object I think expecting households to wait three weeks for a collection is too long ndash savings or no savings Find them elsewhere

626 37

Yes I do object I think our recycling and rubbish collection service are the things that council tax payers can see for their money and going monthly isnrsquot acceptable

739 44

Total 1683 100

Q11 If you have any final comments or suggestions about recyclingrubbish

collections that yoursquod like to make please do so here

Over a thousand comments were received These comments were quite varied and

ranged from residents objecting per se to three weekly collections to some calls for

the council to get much tougher and fine people for not recycling their waste

There were comments that more communications information and advice was

needed to help residents understand what can and canrsquot be recycled and why we are

no longer taking the softer type plastic wrappings or bags This issue about

educating the public and helping them understand more about why certain decisions

are taken and what happens to the waste that goes to be recycled also came up in

the focus groups held in Presteigne in particular

There were some concerns about the potential smell of waste left for three weeks in

a wheeled bin ndash in particular things like pet waste nappies sanitary waste and dog

faeces which is generally put into wheeled bins There were also concerns about

flytipping

Some respondents called for the council to lobby the Welsh and Westminster

governmentrsquos about the cuts to funding and also to lobby and put pressure onto

manufacturers who produce a lot of unnecessary packaging

Other Responses

A further 20+ comments were received from residents via their local councillor from

a town and community council on behalf of their residents or from residents who

either emailed the council via the generic web site or a direct email address or who

rang to speak to an officer

These comments were all logged and analysed The majority resonated with the

views and concerns given by the wider sample and included comments on flytipping

health rats the impact on more urban towns confusion re a 3 weekly collection

cycle lack of garden waste collection storage and space issues operatives role in

keeping streets clean post a collection and comments regarding council tax and

value for money One resident suggested we consider electricity generation as in a

waste to energy plant and another request was made around better promotion and

communications regarding the whole reduce reuse and recycle ethos

Focus Groups

Some focus groups were also held in Presteige and Ystradgynlais with members of

the countyrsquos citizens panel to find out their views and concerns Presteigne

residents had been part of a Welsh Government project called Zero Waste a few

years ago and the majority had a 120 litre bin or purple sacks Residents in

Ystradgynlais were the first to receive the kerbside recycling service A focus group

for Welshpool was organised but only one person was able to attend so a telephone

interview was conducted instead with this resident The full findings will be included

in the final report but are summed up here

Presteigne focus group members were not overly concerned about moving to a three

weekly service but wanted to see better information advice and communications

around why we did and didnrsquot take certain materials and what residents can and

canrsquot recycle using the kerbside boxes and other outlets like the community recycling

sites and the household waste recycling centres They wanted Powys to promote

and make recycling as easy as possible They thought that the council should

assume people could cope with three weekly unless they stated otherwise and

thought residents should try the new service first and then be assessed if they

couldnrsquot manage with the bin they had They thought more could be done at

community recycling sites to allow residents to take other things there for recycling

Batteries and small electrical products were mentioned

Ystradgynlais focus group members felt it was easy to recycle overall but the boxes

were a bit cumbersome and some wanted more as theirs were full up Crews were

praised There were concerns expressed around communal bins for residents in

flats These were full up very quickly and perhaps used by other residents other than

those living in the flats to dispose of extra waste Storage was an issue for those

living in smaller homes and flats and the issue about getting older and putting out

heavy bins and boxes was expressed People felt they were happy to do their bit to

recycle but some families would struggle and need help and extra capacity

The telephone conversation with the Welshpool resident was based around the

difficulties faced by those living in a rural setting and the use of purple sacks and

communal collection points The gentleman had suggestions around better

communications and using the refuse crews to deliver regular flyers and information

to assist residents with their recycling

Conclusions

The purpose of the consultation was to seek and capture views from residents about

how easy they found it to recycle certain items of their household waste currently using the kerbside service (glass cardboard paper certain plastics and food)

how full up their wheeled bin was currently when due a fortnightly collection

what if any concerns they may have about a move to a three weekly refuse collection service

how the council might be able to mitigate for certain households who are more likely to produce more waste based on their personal circumstances (large families residents with incontinence waste to dispose of etc

The feedback received from the consultation will help the service

Understand what concerns households have regarding both the recycling and refuse collection service

Work to address said concerns wherever possible through targeted support and visits to householders who want some help or advice clear generic communications and information via the website posters letters and publicity

A note about market research and consultations

When conducting market research companies use a margin of error and confidence level to ensure that their results are robust and representative of the population they are seeking views from (the population of interest) A consultation however isnrsquot market research as people choose to respond and are not contacted using a sampling methodology People self-select so sometimes when conducting a consultation you only hear the views of the people who are either strongly in favour or strongly object to a proposal The silent majority may not have given a view However when we analyse any consultation results we do consider how robust they are in terms of the population of interest Powys has around 60000 households and a population of around 130000 Every household has the refuse collection and recycling service in one form or another so the population of interest is 60000 To get a robust and representative view of the population as a whole - using an market industry calculator ndash we needed over a thousand households to respond to the survey With 1781 householders responding minus the two Town and Community councils (1779) we can be 95 confident that the views given represent those of Powys households as a whole within a margin of error of 3 This means that as in question 3 where we ask people how easy they find it to recycle and 34 state ldquovery easyrdquo we can be sure that if we repeated the survey the results would be between the range of 31 and 37 When conducting consultation exercise Powys County Council works to the National Principles for Public Engagement in Wales httpwwwparticipationcymruorguknational-principles

Q3 Firstly wed like to know how easy is it for your household to sort your food waste plastics cans glass cardboard and paper ready for the weekly recycling collection

Answer Count Percentage

Very easy 610 34

Easy 947 53

Fairly difficult 155 9

Very difficult 64 4

BASE FIGURE 1776 100

No answer given 5

Total sample 1781

Two follow up questions (Q3a and Q3b) were asked to the 219 respondents who answered fairly or very difficult to Q3

Q3a Please tell us what makes it difficult for you to recycle 216 respondents out of the 219 respondents gave their reasons These included

recycling boxes being an awkward shape or size

boxes being not big enough to hold all the recyclables people had to recycle

people needing more boxes and not knowing how to get them

boxes being stolen

space issues to store the boxes

understanding what is and isnrsquot recyclable

having to carry the boxes through the house on collection day

boxes getting dirty when left out all day

collection points being a distance away from a personrsquos home

mobility issues that people faced in getting the boxes to the kerbside

A full appendix of all the 216 comments received is available on request Some comments

are listed below

We are a top floor flat with limited space for the 3 boxes then I have to put the

boxes out on collection day which are barely full most weeks and so are usually

only put out once a month or so Id like to recycle more but since you took the

wheelie recycle bins away its become much more of a pain than it should be

The recycling itself is easy but the use of recycling boxes is inadequate for the

amount of recycling we undertake We are a household that recycles everything

that can be recycled but would be assisted by smaller wheeled bins for paper

plastic etc Also due to mobility difficulties is difficult to carry boxes to the waste

pickup point

I have problems with mobility and have steps in and out of property and up the side

of the house making it difficult I suffer with arthritis and it hurts my joints

constantly going to the bins

Live up a lane 200 yards long poor surface have to take bins to bottom of

land and have only one leg and am wheelchair bound

The boxes provided are terrible and definitely need improving Nowhere

to store them wheelie bins would be better with smaller stackable boxes

for indoors

Q3b The Councils Waste Awareness Advisors visit households to help them look at their waste and offer some support and advice on how to recycle more or avoid products with lots of packaging Would you like some help on what you can and cant recycle so you can free up space in your wheeled bin ahead of a three weekly collection service

186 respondents out of the 219 answered this question with 14 saying they may like some help 172 said they didnrsquot want a Waste Awareness Adviserrsquos help However on closer scrutiny from the 14 who expressed an interest 11 people went on to fill out the next question which asked for contact details Of these 11 only 8 respondents actually left their details The other 3 respondents had suggested an alternative way for the council to provide information This included using our website and writing to people One respondent said ldquoWritten or website advice in much greater detail is required with specific examples eg Philadelphia cheese topsrdquo

Answer Count

Yes 14

No 172

No answer 33

Total 219

Q3c Which of the following best describes your household type in terms of your approach to recycling

Overwhelmingly 90 of residents feel that they are recycling what they can from their household waste using the weekly kerbside service for glass plastics papercardboard and food waste Just over 90 stated that they were either lsquoavidrsquo recyclers who did all they can or they did their bit and recycled the vast majority of their waste (691 and 107 respectively) Less than 1 (7 respondents) said they put everything in their wheeled bin irrespective of whether or not it could be recycled and 3 (48 respondents) felt that it was the councilrsquos job to collect rubbish and they shouldnrsquot have to recycle

Answer Count Percentage

Avid recyclers who separate everything we can wash it and put it the boxes provided

863 50

A household that does their bit and recycles the vast majority of waste but slips up sometimes and could do a bit more

691 40

A household that recycles some items of waste but not others as itrsquos too much efforttime consuming

107 6

A household that puts everything in their wheeled bin or purple sack ndash wersquove not got time to recycle everything and canrsquot be bothered to do so

7 Less than 1 (04)

A household that feels we pay our council tax and thus shouldnrsquot have to recycle it as well Thatrsquos the councilrsquos job

48 3

BASE (those that answered the question)

1716 100

No answer 65

Total sample 1781

Q4 On average how full would you say your wheeled bin is currently when you are due a collection

Answer Count Percentage

A quarter full (25) 104 7

Half full (50) 155 11

Series1

0

200

400

600

800

Avid recyclersDo my bit

Wheeled binCouncils role

691

1077

48

Recycling Type

Three quarters full (75) 235 17

Full up (100) 916 65

BASE 1410 100

No answer 371

Total sample 1781

The table above shows that nearly two thirds of respondents said that their wheeled bin was currently full up when they were due a collection Just under a fifth said their bin was three quarters full Interestingly when you look at the total number of respondents per household type against those that said their bin was full up on collection day it is clear that the vast majority fall into either the large family or the families with two or more children in nappies categories In the table on the next page 100 out of the 108 large families who answered the survey (93) stated their wheeled bin was full up when due a collection on the current fortnightly service whilst 131 out of the 147 families who had two or more children in nappies (89) said their bin was full up too This shows a clear need for additional capacity when the council moves to three weekly collections for these particular households Similarly 80 of residents who have incontinence waste to dispose of were in the same situation Conversely only around a third of householders (38) who chose to have the smallest wheeled bin possible (the 120litre size) said theirs was full up once a fortnight suggesting that their non-recyclable waste must be very minimal For those who had a standard size 180 litre capacity wheeled bin 58 said it was full

HouseholdBin type Total no of responses

Number who felt their bin was 100 full when due a collection

Large family 108 100

2+ more children in nappies 147 131

Incontinence waste to dispose of 106 85

120 litre bin (small wheeled bin) 157 59

180 litre bin (standard size) 928 539

Total number of households who identified themselves into the categories given

1446 914

The chart here shows where respondents with a 120 litre bin live

Note Residents with purple sacks were not asked this question but a similar question to try and gauge how many bags they were putting out on a fortnightly basis This explains why the total figure given in the chart is 1446 as 197 residents stated they were on purple sacks and the remainder (138) didnrsquot choose a category ndash they chose lsquootherrsquo to describe their household

Q4a When we go to a three weekly rubbish collection do you think yoursquoll be able to manage with the bin yoursquove got

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 263 19

Not sure 217 15

No 924 66

BASE 1404 100

No answer 377

Total sample 1781

In total 1404 respondents out of a possible 1446 who had stated their household type and thus had a wheeled bin of some description answered this follow up question about whether they thought they could manage with the bin they had when the council moved to a three weekly service The table above shows that just under 20 (a fifth) thought they would manage 15 were not sure at this stage and two thirds or 66 didnrsquot think they could manage with their current wheeled bin Not surprisingly 818 of the 924 respondents shown in the above table had stated that their bin was currently full up when they were due a fortnightly collection On this basis itrsquos not surprising that they would feel that there was no more room in their bin for another weekrsquos worth of waste and thus wouldnrsquot manage Again the results showed that predominantly those feeling they

1910

27

3 1 6 3 5 3 1 2 5 1 19

224 4 2

10 11 7 1

157

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

12

0 li

tre

bin

byhellip

LD1

LD2

LD3

LD4

LD5

LD6

LD7

LD8

HR

3

HR

5

NP

8

SA9

SA1

0

SY1

0

SY1

5

SY1

6

SY1

7

SY1

8

SY1

9

SY2

0

SY2

1

SY2

2

No

po

stco

de

Tota

l

Respondents with a 120 litre bin by postcode

wouldnrsquot cope were large families families with children in nappies and those with incontinence waste to dispose of However 473 residents who currently have a standard 180litre bin also felt they wouldnrsquot be able to cope Interestingly there were five respondents who although theyrsquod stated that their 180litre bin was full up when due a collection in the previous question had perhaps reconsidered what they recycled and what they put in their wheeled bin currently because they answered lsquoyesrsquo they would manage on a three weekly cycle No other resident type who had stated their wheeled bin was already full had done so although 55 residents with a 180 litre bin had chosen lsquonot surersquo as their option suggesting that they would reserve judgement and see how a three weekly service worked for them in practice Q4b On average how many purple sacks do you put out currently on the fortnightly service 197 respondents identified themselves as being on purple sacks rather than having a wheeled bin There are a number of reasons why householders are either given or request this alternative provision Predominantly it can be because they donrsquot have space for a wheeled bin they live in a flat they live on a steep incline so a wheeled bin isnrsquot suitable or they live in a rural setting and have a shared residual waste collection point (for some people this can be down a track so in essence itrsquos not possible for a refuse lorry to get down to a property and equally residents wouldnrsquot want to attempt to wheel a bin up to said collection point

As can be seen in the bar chart above the vast majority of the 197 respondents put out just or two bags a fortnight Only 3 people said they tended to put out more than four bags a fortnight

Series10

50

100

150

200

1 2 3 4 4+ No ans Total

72 77

316 3 8

197

No of purple bags put out for collection per fortnight

Q4c When we go three weekly do you think yoursquoll manage as you are doing currently 189 out of the 197 on purple sacks responded to this follow up question with just over a third (37) stating yes they would manage but 63 feeling they wouldnrsquot

The next series of questions focused on the different household types and what the council was considering in terms of mitigations and extra capacity Q5 For large families consisting of six people or more you should currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly if you couldnrsquot fit all your non-recyclable waste into the bin we are considering the following Please state which you would prefer

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 4

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 34

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 12

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 52

Total 102

Out of the 108 residents who stated they were a large family 102 answered this question Overall it appears that for residents with a 180 litre bin the preference was to swap to a bigger 240litre bin Equally those that were already on a 240litrre bin would rather have an additional smaller 120litre bin However purple sacks were the preferred choice for some but the numbers were lower Q6 For families with 2 or more children in nappies you may currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly we are considering a free nappy collection scheme (frequency to be determined but likely to be weekly or fortnightly)

37

63

of respondents on purple sacks

Yes No

which would allow you to dispose of your nappies and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste Would this help 147 respondents had stated that they were in the position of having two or more children in nappies currently 139 of them chose to answer this question 70 felt a free and additional nappy collection service would be a help

The same respondents were then asked a follow up question Q6a If there was a nappy collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks Five of the 139 respondents who answered Q6 chose not to answer this follow up question leaving 134 responses The results showed that 60 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage with their current bin and an extra nappy collection service 40 felt they would be able to manage with six householders also happy to consider swapping back from a 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 48 36

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

6 4

No 80 60

Total 134 100

Finally the same respondents (families with 2 or more children in nappies) were asked one more question

0

20

40

60

80

100

Yes No

70

30

Chart Title

Q6b If the nappy service isnrsquot deemed viable for Powys then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 6

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 42

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 24

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 47

Total 119

119 families answered this final question As was the case for the larger families the preference for those with a 180litre bin was clearly to move to a 240litre wheeled bin instead Those families who were already on the larger bin were more likely to want an extra 120litre bin if there were no nappy collection scheme on offer but 24 did say theyrsquod prefer a roll of purple sacks instead Q7 For households where someone has incontinence waste or similar eg incontinence pads or colostomy bags you may have either a 180litre (standard size) or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly wersquod like to be able to offer a free incontinence wastenappy collection scheme (frequency to be agreed but likely to be weekly or fortnightly) This would allow you to dispose of some of your waste and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste (This scheme would not include colostomy bags) Would this help 106 residents stated they had incontinence waste to dispose of However only 85 choose to answer this first specific question about the proposals around three weekly collections 56 were interested in a free service whilst 29 were not

The same respondents were then asked a similar question as those families with children in nappies

56

29

Interest in incontinence collection scheme

Yes No

Q7a If there was a collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks One more person choose to answer this question so 86 respondents gave a view The results showed that 50 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage but 50 did Looking at the 50 who felt confident 10 of these residents said they were happy to consider swapping back from their current 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 34 40

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

9 10

No 43 50

Total 86 100

Q7b If the service isnrsquot deemed viable then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household 81 out of the 86 respondents who had answered the previous question gave a view on what might work best for them Again there appears to be a preference by residents for an extra bin rather than purple sacks

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 28

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 27

Total 81

Q8 For households who opted for a 120litre bin there is an option to swap to a bigger 180litre bin or to stay as you are if you felt you didnrsquot have much non-recyclable waste to dispose of Which would be your preferred option 157 residents had identified themselves as having a 120litre bin which is the smallest wheeled bin available 144 answered this question 57 were happy to stay on the 120litre bin they had already compared to 43 who wanted to swap to a 180litre bin when the council moved to a three weekly collection

Answer Count Percentage

Stick with the 120litre bin 82

Swap to a 180 litre bin 62

Total 144

Q10 Having considered your household situation and the plans being put forward do you have any major concerns about a change to a three weekly rubbish collection service

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 1358 80

No 336 20

Total 1694 100

This question was asked of all respondents 1694 out of the 1781 respondents answered this question The vast majority (80) had some concerns about the move to a three weekly refuse collection service and these concerns related to a number of issues Residents were asked to give details Q10a The top five concerns were

potential smell of waste after three weeks

vermin

fly tipping

capacity issues re storage andor more boxes

communications and information re- recycling

Q10b What about moving to a monthly rubbish collection service Would

you have any objections if you could store your non-recyclable waste in a

big enough bin

Respondents were given the choice of four answers Two were objecting to a move to four weekly and two were supporting this 1683 responses were received for this question Just under a fifth (19) felt a move to a monthly collection service either now or after the three weekly service had been rolled out for a while would not cause them a problem However 81 did object

Answer Count Percentage

No I wouldnrsquot object It makes sense to go monthly and make the savings now rather than going 3 weekly and then monthly

173 10

No I wouldnrsquot object Irsquod be happy to go three weekly first and then move to a monthly collection over time

145 9

Yes I do object I think expecting households to wait three weeks for a collection is too long ndash savings or no savings Find them elsewhere

626 37

Yes I do object I think our recycling and rubbish collection service are the things that council tax payers can see for their money and going monthly isnrsquot acceptable

739 44

Total 1683 100

Q11 If you have any final comments or suggestions about recyclingrubbish

collections that yoursquod like to make please do so here

Over a thousand comments were received These comments were quite varied and

ranged from residents objecting per se to three weekly collections to some calls for

the council to get much tougher and fine people for not recycling their waste

There were comments that more communications information and advice was

needed to help residents understand what can and canrsquot be recycled and why we are

no longer taking the softer type plastic wrappings or bags This issue about

educating the public and helping them understand more about why certain decisions

are taken and what happens to the waste that goes to be recycled also came up in

the focus groups held in Presteigne in particular

There were some concerns about the potential smell of waste left for three weeks in

a wheeled bin ndash in particular things like pet waste nappies sanitary waste and dog

faeces which is generally put into wheeled bins There were also concerns about

flytipping

Some respondents called for the council to lobby the Welsh and Westminster

governmentrsquos about the cuts to funding and also to lobby and put pressure onto

manufacturers who produce a lot of unnecessary packaging

Other Responses

A further 20+ comments were received from residents via their local councillor from

a town and community council on behalf of their residents or from residents who

either emailed the council via the generic web site or a direct email address or who

rang to speak to an officer

These comments were all logged and analysed The majority resonated with the

views and concerns given by the wider sample and included comments on flytipping

health rats the impact on more urban towns confusion re a 3 weekly collection

cycle lack of garden waste collection storage and space issues operatives role in

keeping streets clean post a collection and comments regarding council tax and

value for money One resident suggested we consider electricity generation as in a

waste to energy plant and another request was made around better promotion and

communications regarding the whole reduce reuse and recycle ethos

Focus Groups

Some focus groups were also held in Presteige and Ystradgynlais with members of

the countyrsquos citizens panel to find out their views and concerns Presteigne

residents had been part of a Welsh Government project called Zero Waste a few

years ago and the majority had a 120 litre bin or purple sacks Residents in

Ystradgynlais were the first to receive the kerbside recycling service A focus group

for Welshpool was organised but only one person was able to attend so a telephone

interview was conducted instead with this resident The full findings will be included

in the final report but are summed up here

Presteigne focus group members were not overly concerned about moving to a three

weekly service but wanted to see better information advice and communications

around why we did and didnrsquot take certain materials and what residents can and

canrsquot recycle using the kerbside boxes and other outlets like the community recycling

sites and the household waste recycling centres They wanted Powys to promote

and make recycling as easy as possible They thought that the council should

assume people could cope with three weekly unless they stated otherwise and

thought residents should try the new service first and then be assessed if they

couldnrsquot manage with the bin they had They thought more could be done at

community recycling sites to allow residents to take other things there for recycling

Batteries and small electrical products were mentioned

Ystradgynlais focus group members felt it was easy to recycle overall but the boxes

were a bit cumbersome and some wanted more as theirs were full up Crews were

praised There were concerns expressed around communal bins for residents in

flats These were full up very quickly and perhaps used by other residents other than

those living in the flats to dispose of extra waste Storage was an issue for those

living in smaller homes and flats and the issue about getting older and putting out

heavy bins and boxes was expressed People felt they were happy to do their bit to

recycle but some families would struggle and need help and extra capacity

The telephone conversation with the Welshpool resident was based around the

difficulties faced by those living in a rural setting and the use of purple sacks and

communal collection points The gentleman had suggestions around better

communications and using the refuse crews to deliver regular flyers and information

to assist residents with their recycling

Conclusions

The purpose of the consultation was to seek and capture views from residents about

how easy they found it to recycle certain items of their household waste currently using the kerbside service (glass cardboard paper certain plastics and food)

how full up their wheeled bin was currently when due a fortnightly collection

what if any concerns they may have about a move to a three weekly refuse collection service

how the council might be able to mitigate for certain households who are more likely to produce more waste based on their personal circumstances (large families residents with incontinence waste to dispose of etc

The feedback received from the consultation will help the service

Understand what concerns households have regarding both the recycling and refuse collection service

Work to address said concerns wherever possible through targeted support and visits to householders who want some help or advice clear generic communications and information via the website posters letters and publicity

A note about market research and consultations

When conducting market research companies use a margin of error and confidence level to ensure that their results are robust and representative of the population they are seeking views from (the population of interest) A consultation however isnrsquot market research as people choose to respond and are not contacted using a sampling methodology People self-select so sometimes when conducting a consultation you only hear the views of the people who are either strongly in favour or strongly object to a proposal The silent majority may not have given a view However when we analyse any consultation results we do consider how robust they are in terms of the population of interest Powys has around 60000 households and a population of around 130000 Every household has the refuse collection and recycling service in one form or another so the population of interest is 60000 To get a robust and representative view of the population as a whole - using an market industry calculator ndash we needed over a thousand households to respond to the survey With 1781 householders responding minus the two Town and Community councils (1779) we can be 95 confident that the views given represent those of Powys households as a whole within a margin of error of 3 This means that as in question 3 where we ask people how easy they find it to recycle and 34 state ldquovery easyrdquo we can be sure that if we repeated the survey the results would be between the range of 31 and 37 When conducting consultation exercise Powys County Council works to the National Principles for Public Engagement in Wales httpwwwparticipationcymruorguknational-principles

Live up a lane 200 yards long poor surface have to take bins to bottom of

land and have only one leg and am wheelchair bound

The boxes provided are terrible and definitely need improving Nowhere

to store them wheelie bins would be better with smaller stackable boxes

for indoors

Q3b The Councils Waste Awareness Advisors visit households to help them look at their waste and offer some support and advice on how to recycle more or avoid products with lots of packaging Would you like some help on what you can and cant recycle so you can free up space in your wheeled bin ahead of a three weekly collection service

186 respondents out of the 219 answered this question with 14 saying they may like some help 172 said they didnrsquot want a Waste Awareness Adviserrsquos help However on closer scrutiny from the 14 who expressed an interest 11 people went on to fill out the next question which asked for contact details Of these 11 only 8 respondents actually left their details The other 3 respondents had suggested an alternative way for the council to provide information This included using our website and writing to people One respondent said ldquoWritten or website advice in much greater detail is required with specific examples eg Philadelphia cheese topsrdquo

Answer Count

Yes 14

No 172

No answer 33

Total 219

Q3c Which of the following best describes your household type in terms of your approach to recycling

Overwhelmingly 90 of residents feel that they are recycling what they can from their household waste using the weekly kerbside service for glass plastics papercardboard and food waste Just over 90 stated that they were either lsquoavidrsquo recyclers who did all they can or they did their bit and recycled the vast majority of their waste (691 and 107 respectively) Less than 1 (7 respondents) said they put everything in their wheeled bin irrespective of whether or not it could be recycled and 3 (48 respondents) felt that it was the councilrsquos job to collect rubbish and they shouldnrsquot have to recycle

Answer Count Percentage

Avid recyclers who separate everything we can wash it and put it the boxes provided

863 50

A household that does their bit and recycles the vast majority of waste but slips up sometimes and could do a bit more

691 40

A household that recycles some items of waste but not others as itrsquos too much efforttime consuming

107 6

A household that puts everything in their wheeled bin or purple sack ndash wersquove not got time to recycle everything and canrsquot be bothered to do so

7 Less than 1 (04)

A household that feels we pay our council tax and thus shouldnrsquot have to recycle it as well Thatrsquos the councilrsquos job

48 3

BASE (those that answered the question)

1716 100

No answer 65

Total sample 1781

Q4 On average how full would you say your wheeled bin is currently when you are due a collection

Answer Count Percentage

A quarter full (25) 104 7

Half full (50) 155 11

Series1

0

200

400

600

800

Avid recyclersDo my bit

Wheeled binCouncils role

691

1077

48

Recycling Type

Three quarters full (75) 235 17

Full up (100) 916 65

BASE 1410 100

No answer 371

Total sample 1781

The table above shows that nearly two thirds of respondents said that their wheeled bin was currently full up when they were due a collection Just under a fifth said their bin was three quarters full Interestingly when you look at the total number of respondents per household type against those that said their bin was full up on collection day it is clear that the vast majority fall into either the large family or the families with two or more children in nappies categories In the table on the next page 100 out of the 108 large families who answered the survey (93) stated their wheeled bin was full up when due a collection on the current fortnightly service whilst 131 out of the 147 families who had two or more children in nappies (89) said their bin was full up too This shows a clear need for additional capacity when the council moves to three weekly collections for these particular households Similarly 80 of residents who have incontinence waste to dispose of were in the same situation Conversely only around a third of householders (38) who chose to have the smallest wheeled bin possible (the 120litre size) said theirs was full up once a fortnight suggesting that their non-recyclable waste must be very minimal For those who had a standard size 180 litre capacity wheeled bin 58 said it was full

HouseholdBin type Total no of responses

Number who felt their bin was 100 full when due a collection

Large family 108 100

2+ more children in nappies 147 131

Incontinence waste to dispose of 106 85

120 litre bin (small wheeled bin) 157 59

180 litre bin (standard size) 928 539

Total number of households who identified themselves into the categories given

1446 914

The chart here shows where respondents with a 120 litre bin live

Note Residents with purple sacks were not asked this question but a similar question to try and gauge how many bags they were putting out on a fortnightly basis This explains why the total figure given in the chart is 1446 as 197 residents stated they were on purple sacks and the remainder (138) didnrsquot choose a category ndash they chose lsquootherrsquo to describe their household

Q4a When we go to a three weekly rubbish collection do you think yoursquoll be able to manage with the bin yoursquove got

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 263 19

Not sure 217 15

No 924 66

BASE 1404 100

No answer 377

Total sample 1781

In total 1404 respondents out of a possible 1446 who had stated their household type and thus had a wheeled bin of some description answered this follow up question about whether they thought they could manage with the bin they had when the council moved to a three weekly service The table above shows that just under 20 (a fifth) thought they would manage 15 were not sure at this stage and two thirds or 66 didnrsquot think they could manage with their current wheeled bin Not surprisingly 818 of the 924 respondents shown in the above table had stated that their bin was currently full up when they were due a fortnightly collection On this basis itrsquos not surprising that they would feel that there was no more room in their bin for another weekrsquos worth of waste and thus wouldnrsquot manage Again the results showed that predominantly those feeling they

1910

27

3 1 6 3 5 3 1 2 5 1 19

224 4 2

10 11 7 1

157

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

12

0 li

tre

bin

byhellip

LD1

LD2

LD3

LD4

LD5

LD6

LD7

LD8

HR

3

HR

5

NP

8

SA9

SA1

0

SY1

0

SY1

5

SY1

6

SY1

7

SY1

8

SY1

9

SY2

0

SY2

1

SY2

2

No

po

stco

de

Tota

l

Respondents with a 120 litre bin by postcode

wouldnrsquot cope were large families families with children in nappies and those with incontinence waste to dispose of However 473 residents who currently have a standard 180litre bin also felt they wouldnrsquot be able to cope Interestingly there were five respondents who although theyrsquod stated that their 180litre bin was full up when due a collection in the previous question had perhaps reconsidered what they recycled and what they put in their wheeled bin currently because they answered lsquoyesrsquo they would manage on a three weekly cycle No other resident type who had stated their wheeled bin was already full had done so although 55 residents with a 180 litre bin had chosen lsquonot surersquo as their option suggesting that they would reserve judgement and see how a three weekly service worked for them in practice Q4b On average how many purple sacks do you put out currently on the fortnightly service 197 respondents identified themselves as being on purple sacks rather than having a wheeled bin There are a number of reasons why householders are either given or request this alternative provision Predominantly it can be because they donrsquot have space for a wheeled bin they live in a flat they live on a steep incline so a wheeled bin isnrsquot suitable or they live in a rural setting and have a shared residual waste collection point (for some people this can be down a track so in essence itrsquos not possible for a refuse lorry to get down to a property and equally residents wouldnrsquot want to attempt to wheel a bin up to said collection point

As can be seen in the bar chart above the vast majority of the 197 respondents put out just or two bags a fortnight Only 3 people said they tended to put out more than four bags a fortnight

Series10

50

100

150

200

1 2 3 4 4+ No ans Total

72 77

316 3 8

197

No of purple bags put out for collection per fortnight

Q4c When we go three weekly do you think yoursquoll manage as you are doing currently 189 out of the 197 on purple sacks responded to this follow up question with just over a third (37) stating yes they would manage but 63 feeling they wouldnrsquot

The next series of questions focused on the different household types and what the council was considering in terms of mitigations and extra capacity Q5 For large families consisting of six people or more you should currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly if you couldnrsquot fit all your non-recyclable waste into the bin we are considering the following Please state which you would prefer

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 4

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 34

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 12

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 52

Total 102

Out of the 108 residents who stated they were a large family 102 answered this question Overall it appears that for residents with a 180 litre bin the preference was to swap to a bigger 240litre bin Equally those that were already on a 240litrre bin would rather have an additional smaller 120litre bin However purple sacks were the preferred choice for some but the numbers were lower Q6 For families with 2 or more children in nappies you may currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly we are considering a free nappy collection scheme (frequency to be determined but likely to be weekly or fortnightly)

37

63

of respondents on purple sacks

Yes No

which would allow you to dispose of your nappies and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste Would this help 147 respondents had stated that they were in the position of having two or more children in nappies currently 139 of them chose to answer this question 70 felt a free and additional nappy collection service would be a help

The same respondents were then asked a follow up question Q6a If there was a nappy collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks Five of the 139 respondents who answered Q6 chose not to answer this follow up question leaving 134 responses The results showed that 60 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage with their current bin and an extra nappy collection service 40 felt they would be able to manage with six householders also happy to consider swapping back from a 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 48 36

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

6 4

No 80 60

Total 134 100

Finally the same respondents (families with 2 or more children in nappies) were asked one more question

0

20

40

60

80

100

Yes No

70

30

Chart Title

Q6b If the nappy service isnrsquot deemed viable for Powys then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 6

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 42

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 24

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 47

Total 119

119 families answered this final question As was the case for the larger families the preference for those with a 180litre bin was clearly to move to a 240litre wheeled bin instead Those families who were already on the larger bin were more likely to want an extra 120litre bin if there were no nappy collection scheme on offer but 24 did say theyrsquod prefer a roll of purple sacks instead Q7 For households where someone has incontinence waste or similar eg incontinence pads or colostomy bags you may have either a 180litre (standard size) or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly wersquod like to be able to offer a free incontinence wastenappy collection scheme (frequency to be agreed but likely to be weekly or fortnightly) This would allow you to dispose of some of your waste and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste (This scheme would not include colostomy bags) Would this help 106 residents stated they had incontinence waste to dispose of However only 85 choose to answer this first specific question about the proposals around three weekly collections 56 were interested in a free service whilst 29 were not

The same respondents were then asked a similar question as those families with children in nappies

56

29

Interest in incontinence collection scheme

Yes No

Q7a If there was a collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks One more person choose to answer this question so 86 respondents gave a view The results showed that 50 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage but 50 did Looking at the 50 who felt confident 10 of these residents said they were happy to consider swapping back from their current 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 34 40

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

9 10

No 43 50

Total 86 100

Q7b If the service isnrsquot deemed viable then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household 81 out of the 86 respondents who had answered the previous question gave a view on what might work best for them Again there appears to be a preference by residents for an extra bin rather than purple sacks

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 28

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 27

Total 81

Q8 For households who opted for a 120litre bin there is an option to swap to a bigger 180litre bin or to stay as you are if you felt you didnrsquot have much non-recyclable waste to dispose of Which would be your preferred option 157 residents had identified themselves as having a 120litre bin which is the smallest wheeled bin available 144 answered this question 57 were happy to stay on the 120litre bin they had already compared to 43 who wanted to swap to a 180litre bin when the council moved to a three weekly collection

Answer Count Percentage

Stick with the 120litre bin 82

Swap to a 180 litre bin 62

Total 144

Q10 Having considered your household situation and the plans being put forward do you have any major concerns about a change to a three weekly rubbish collection service

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 1358 80

No 336 20

Total 1694 100

This question was asked of all respondents 1694 out of the 1781 respondents answered this question The vast majority (80) had some concerns about the move to a three weekly refuse collection service and these concerns related to a number of issues Residents were asked to give details Q10a The top five concerns were

potential smell of waste after three weeks

vermin

fly tipping

capacity issues re storage andor more boxes

communications and information re- recycling

Q10b What about moving to a monthly rubbish collection service Would

you have any objections if you could store your non-recyclable waste in a

big enough bin

Respondents were given the choice of four answers Two were objecting to a move to four weekly and two were supporting this 1683 responses were received for this question Just under a fifth (19) felt a move to a monthly collection service either now or after the three weekly service had been rolled out for a while would not cause them a problem However 81 did object

Answer Count Percentage

No I wouldnrsquot object It makes sense to go monthly and make the savings now rather than going 3 weekly and then monthly

173 10

No I wouldnrsquot object Irsquod be happy to go three weekly first and then move to a monthly collection over time

145 9

Yes I do object I think expecting households to wait three weeks for a collection is too long ndash savings or no savings Find them elsewhere

626 37

Yes I do object I think our recycling and rubbish collection service are the things that council tax payers can see for their money and going monthly isnrsquot acceptable

739 44

Total 1683 100

Q11 If you have any final comments or suggestions about recyclingrubbish

collections that yoursquod like to make please do so here

Over a thousand comments were received These comments were quite varied and

ranged from residents objecting per se to three weekly collections to some calls for

the council to get much tougher and fine people for not recycling their waste

There were comments that more communications information and advice was

needed to help residents understand what can and canrsquot be recycled and why we are

no longer taking the softer type plastic wrappings or bags This issue about

educating the public and helping them understand more about why certain decisions

are taken and what happens to the waste that goes to be recycled also came up in

the focus groups held in Presteigne in particular

There were some concerns about the potential smell of waste left for three weeks in

a wheeled bin ndash in particular things like pet waste nappies sanitary waste and dog

faeces which is generally put into wheeled bins There were also concerns about

flytipping

Some respondents called for the council to lobby the Welsh and Westminster

governmentrsquos about the cuts to funding and also to lobby and put pressure onto

manufacturers who produce a lot of unnecessary packaging

Other Responses

A further 20+ comments were received from residents via their local councillor from

a town and community council on behalf of their residents or from residents who

either emailed the council via the generic web site or a direct email address or who

rang to speak to an officer

These comments were all logged and analysed The majority resonated with the

views and concerns given by the wider sample and included comments on flytipping

health rats the impact on more urban towns confusion re a 3 weekly collection

cycle lack of garden waste collection storage and space issues operatives role in

keeping streets clean post a collection and comments regarding council tax and

value for money One resident suggested we consider electricity generation as in a

waste to energy plant and another request was made around better promotion and

communications regarding the whole reduce reuse and recycle ethos

Focus Groups

Some focus groups were also held in Presteige and Ystradgynlais with members of

the countyrsquos citizens panel to find out their views and concerns Presteigne

residents had been part of a Welsh Government project called Zero Waste a few

years ago and the majority had a 120 litre bin or purple sacks Residents in

Ystradgynlais were the first to receive the kerbside recycling service A focus group

for Welshpool was organised but only one person was able to attend so a telephone

interview was conducted instead with this resident The full findings will be included

in the final report but are summed up here

Presteigne focus group members were not overly concerned about moving to a three

weekly service but wanted to see better information advice and communications

around why we did and didnrsquot take certain materials and what residents can and

canrsquot recycle using the kerbside boxes and other outlets like the community recycling

sites and the household waste recycling centres They wanted Powys to promote

and make recycling as easy as possible They thought that the council should

assume people could cope with three weekly unless they stated otherwise and

thought residents should try the new service first and then be assessed if they

couldnrsquot manage with the bin they had They thought more could be done at

community recycling sites to allow residents to take other things there for recycling

Batteries and small electrical products were mentioned

Ystradgynlais focus group members felt it was easy to recycle overall but the boxes

were a bit cumbersome and some wanted more as theirs were full up Crews were

praised There were concerns expressed around communal bins for residents in

flats These were full up very quickly and perhaps used by other residents other than

those living in the flats to dispose of extra waste Storage was an issue for those

living in smaller homes and flats and the issue about getting older and putting out

heavy bins and boxes was expressed People felt they were happy to do their bit to

recycle but some families would struggle and need help and extra capacity

The telephone conversation with the Welshpool resident was based around the

difficulties faced by those living in a rural setting and the use of purple sacks and

communal collection points The gentleman had suggestions around better

communications and using the refuse crews to deliver regular flyers and information

to assist residents with their recycling

Conclusions

The purpose of the consultation was to seek and capture views from residents about

how easy they found it to recycle certain items of their household waste currently using the kerbside service (glass cardboard paper certain plastics and food)

how full up their wheeled bin was currently when due a fortnightly collection

what if any concerns they may have about a move to a three weekly refuse collection service

how the council might be able to mitigate for certain households who are more likely to produce more waste based on their personal circumstances (large families residents with incontinence waste to dispose of etc

The feedback received from the consultation will help the service

Understand what concerns households have regarding both the recycling and refuse collection service

Work to address said concerns wherever possible through targeted support and visits to householders who want some help or advice clear generic communications and information via the website posters letters and publicity

A note about market research and consultations

When conducting market research companies use a margin of error and confidence level to ensure that their results are robust and representative of the population they are seeking views from (the population of interest) A consultation however isnrsquot market research as people choose to respond and are not contacted using a sampling methodology People self-select so sometimes when conducting a consultation you only hear the views of the people who are either strongly in favour or strongly object to a proposal The silent majority may not have given a view However when we analyse any consultation results we do consider how robust they are in terms of the population of interest Powys has around 60000 households and a population of around 130000 Every household has the refuse collection and recycling service in one form or another so the population of interest is 60000 To get a robust and representative view of the population as a whole - using an market industry calculator ndash we needed over a thousand households to respond to the survey With 1781 householders responding minus the two Town and Community councils (1779) we can be 95 confident that the views given represent those of Powys households as a whole within a margin of error of 3 This means that as in question 3 where we ask people how easy they find it to recycle and 34 state ldquovery easyrdquo we can be sure that if we repeated the survey the results would be between the range of 31 and 37 When conducting consultation exercise Powys County Council works to the National Principles for Public Engagement in Wales httpwwwparticipationcymruorguknational-principles

Answer Count Percentage

Avid recyclers who separate everything we can wash it and put it the boxes provided

863 50

A household that does their bit and recycles the vast majority of waste but slips up sometimes and could do a bit more

691 40

A household that recycles some items of waste but not others as itrsquos too much efforttime consuming

107 6

A household that puts everything in their wheeled bin or purple sack ndash wersquove not got time to recycle everything and canrsquot be bothered to do so

7 Less than 1 (04)

A household that feels we pay our council tax and thus shouldnrsquot have to recycle it as well Thatrsquos the councilrsquos job

48 3

BASE (those that answered the question)

1716 100

No answer 65

Total sample 1781

Q4 On average how full would you say your wheeled bin is currently when you are due a collection

Answer Count Percentage

A quarter full (25) 104 7

Half full (50) 155 11

Series1

0

200

400

600

800

Avid recyclersDo my bit

Wheeled binCouncils role

691

1077

48

Recycling Type

Three quarters full (75) 235 17

Full up (100) 916 65

BASE 1410 100

No answer 371

Total sample 1781

The table above shows that nearly two thirds of respondents said that their wheeled bin was currently full up when they were due a collection Just under a fifth said their bin was three quarters full Interestingly when you look at the total number of respondents per household type against those that said their bin was full up on collection day it is clear that the vast majority fall into either the large family or the families with two or more children in nappies categories In the table on the next page 100 out of the 108 large families who answered the survey (93) stated their wheeled bin was full up when due a collection on the current fortnightly service whilst 131 out of the 147 families who had two or more children in nappies (89) said their bin was full up too This shows a clear need for additional capacity when the council moves to three weekly collections for these particular households Similarly 80 of residents who have incontinence waste to dispose of were in the same situation Conversely only around a third of householders (38) who chose to have the smallest wheeled bin possible (the 120litre size) said theirs was full up once a fortnight suggesting that their non-recyclable waste must be very minimal For those who had a standard size 180 litre capacity wheeled bin 58 said it was full

HouseholdBin type Total no of responses

Number who felt their bin was 100 full when due a collection

Large family 108 100

2+ more children in nappies 147 131

Incontinence waste to dispose of 106 85

120 litre bin (small wheeled bin) 157 59

180 litre bin (standard size) 928 539

Total number of households who identified themselves into the categories given

1446 914

The chart here shows where respondents with a 120 litre bin live

Note Residents with purple sacks were not asked this question but a similar question to try and gauge how many bags they were putting out on a fortnightly basis This explains why the total figure given in the chart is 1446 as 197 residents stated they were on purple sacks and the remainder (138) didnrsquot choose a category ndash they chose lsquootherrsquo to describe their household

Q4a When we go to a three weekly rubbish collection do you think yoursquoll be able to manage with the bin yoursquove got

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 263 19

Not sure 217 15

No 924 66

BASE 1404 100

No answer 377

Total sample 1781

In total 1404 respondents out of a possible 1446 who had stated their household type and thus had a wheeled bin of some description answered this follow up question about whether they thought they could manage with the bin they had when the council moved to a three weekly service The table above shows that just under 20 (a fifth) thought they would manage 15 were not sure at this stage and two thirds or 66 didnrsquot think they could manage with their current wheeled bin Not surprisingly 818 of the 924 respondents shown in the above table had stated that their bin was currently full up when they were due a fortnightly collection On this basis itrsquos not surprising that they would feel that there was no more room in their bin for another weekrsquos worth of waste and thus wouldnrsquot manage Again the results showed that predominantly those feeling they

1910

27

3 1 6 3 5 3 1 2 5 1 19

224 4 2

10 11 7 1

157

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

12

0 li

tre

bin

byhellip

LD1

LD2

LD3

LD4

LD5

LD6

LD7

LD8

HR

3

HR

5

NP

8

SA9

SA1

0

SY1

0

SY1

5

SY1

6

SY1

7

SY1

8

SY1

9

SY2

0

SY2

1

SY2

2

No

po

stco

de

Tota

l

Respondents with a 120 litre bin by postcode

wouldnrsquot cope were large families families with children in nappies and those with incontinence waste to dispose of However 473 residents who currently have a standard 180litre bin also felt they wouldnrsquot be able to cope Interestingly there were five respondents who although theyrsquod stated that their 180litre bin was full up when due a collection in the previous question had perhaps reconsidered what they recycled and what they put in their wheeled bin currently because they answered lsquoyesrsquo they would manage on a three weekly cycle No other resident type who had stated their wheeled bin was already full had done so although 55 residents with a 180 litre bin had chosen lsquonot surersquo as their option suggesting that they would reserve judgement and see how a three weekly service worked for them in practice Q4b On average how many purple sacks do you put out currently on the fortnightly service 197 respondents identified themselves as being on purple sacks rather than having a wheeled bin There are a number of reasons why householders are either given or request this alternative provision Predominantly it can be because they donrsquot have space for a wheeled bin they live in a flat they live on a steep incline so a wheeled bin isnrsquot suitable or they live in a rural setting and have a shared residual waste collection point (for some people this can be down a track so in essence itrsquos not possible for a refuse lorry to get down to a property and equally residents wouldnrsquot want to attempt to wheel a bin up to said collection point

As can be seen in the bar chart above the vast majority of the 197 respondents put out just or two bags a fortnight Only 3 people said they tended to put out more than four bags a fortnight

Series10

50

100

150

200

1 2 3 4 4+ No ans Total

72 77

316 3 8

197

No of purple bags put out for collection per fortnight

Q4c When we go three weekly do you think yoursquoll manage as you are doing currently 189 out of the 197 on purple sacks responded to this follow up question with just over a third (37) stating yes they would manage but 63 feeling they wouldnrsquot

The next series of questions focused on the different household types and what the council was considering in terms of mitigations and extra capacity Q5 For large families consisting of six people or more you should currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly if you couldnrsquot fit all your non-recyclable waste into the bin we are considering the following Please state which you would prefer

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 4

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 34

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 12

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 52

Total 102

Out of the 108 residents who stated they were a large family 102 answered this question Overall it appears that for residents with a 180 litre bin the preference was to swap to a bigger 240litre bin Equally those that were already on a 240litrre bin would rather have an additional smaller 120litre bin However purple sacks were the preferred choice for some but the numbers were lower Q6 For families with 2 or more children in nappies you may currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly we are considering a free nappy collection scheme (frequency to be determined but likely to be weekly or fortnightly)

37

63

of respondents on purple sacks

Yes No

which would allow you to dispose of your nappies and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste Would this help 147 respondents had stated that they were in the position of having two or more children in nappies currently 139 of them chose to answer this question 70 felt a free and additional nappy collection service would be a help

The same respondents were then asked a follow up question Q6a If there was a nappy collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks Five of the 139 respondents who answered Q6 chose not to answer this follow up question leaving 134 responses The results showed that 60 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage with their current bin and an extra nappy collection service 40 felt they would be able to manage with six householders also happy to consider swapping back from a 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 48 36

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

6 4

No 80 60

Total 134 100

Finally the same respondents (families with 2 or more children in nappies) were asked one more question

0

20

40

60

80

100

Yes No

70

30

Chart Title

Q6b If the nappy service isnrsquot deemed viable for Powys then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 6

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 42

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 24

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 47

Total 119

119 families answered this final question As was the case for the larger families the preference for those with a 180litre bin was clearly to move to a 240litre wheeled bin instead Those families who were already on the larger bin were more likely to want an extra 120litre bin if there were no nappy collection scheme on offer but 24 did say theyrsquod prefer a roll of purple sacks instead Q7 For households where someone has incontinence waste or similar eg incontinence pads or colostomy bags you may have either a 180litre (standard size) or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly wersquod like to be able to offer a free incontinence wastenappy collection scheme (frequency to be agreed but likely to be weekly or fortnightly) This would allow you to dispose of some of your waste and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste (This scheme would not include colostomy bags) Would this help 106 residents stated they had incontinence waste to dispose of However only 85 choose to answer this first specific question about the proposals around three weekly collections 56 were interested in a free service whilst 29 were not

The same respondents were then asked a similar question as those families with children in nappies

56

29

Interest in incontinence collection scheme

Yes No

Q7a If there was a collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks One more person choose to answer this question so 86 respondents gave a view The results showed that 50 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage but 50 did Looking at the 50 who felt confident 10 of these residents said they were happy to consider swapping back from their current 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 34 40

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

9 10

No 43 50

Total 86 100

Q7b If the service isnrsquot deemed viable then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household 81 out of the 86 respondents who had answered the previous question gave a view on what might work best for them Again there appears to be a preference by residents for an extra bin rather than purple sacks

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 28

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 27

Total 81

Q8 For households who opted for a 120litre bin there is an option to swap to a bigger 180litre bin or to stay as you are if you felt you didnrsquot have much non-recyclable waste to dispose of Which would be your preferred option 157 residents had identified themselves as having a 120litre bin which is the smallest wheeled bin available 144 answered this question 57 were happy to stay on the 120litre bin they had already compared to 43 who wanted to swap to a 180litre bin when the council moved to a three weekly collection

Answer Count Percentage

Stick with the 120litre bin 82

Swap to a 180 litre bin 62

Total 144

Q10 Having considered your household situation and the plans being put forward do you have any major concerns about a change to a three weekly rubbish collection service

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 1358 80

No 336 20

Total 1694 100

This question was asked of all respondents 1694 out of the 1781 respondents answered this question The vast majority (80) had some concerns about the move to a three weekly refuse collection service and these concerns related to a number of issues Residents were asked to give details Q10a The top five concerns were

potential smell of waste after three weeks

vermin

fly tipping

capacity issues re storage andor more boxes

communications and information re- recycling

Q10b What about moving to a monthly rubbish collection service Would

you have any objections if you could store your non-recyclable waste in a

big enough bin

Respondents were given the choice of four answers Two were objecting to a move to four weekly and two were supporting this 1683 responses were received for this question Just under a fifth (19) felt a move to a monthly collection service either now or after the three weekly service had been rolled out for a while would not cause them a problem However 81 did object

Answer Count Percentage

No I wouldnrsquot object It makes sense to go monthly and make the savings now rather than going 3 weekly and then monthly

173 10

No I wouldnrsquot object Irsquod be happy to go three weekly first and then move to a monthly collection over time

145 9

Yes I do object I think expecting households to wait three weeks for a collection is too long ndash savings or no savings Find them elsewhere

626 37

Yes I do object I think our recycling and rubbish collection service are the things that council tax payers can see for their money and going monthly isnrsquot acceptable

739 44

Total 1683 100

Q11 If you have any final comments or suggestions about recyclingrubbish

collections that yoursquod like to make please do so here

Over a thousand comments were received These comments were quite varied and

ranged from residents objecting per se to three weekly collections to some calls for

the council to get much tougher and fine people for not recycling their waste

There were comments that more communications information and advice was

needed to help residents understand what can and canrsquot be recycled and why we are

no longer taking the softer type plastic wrappings or bags This issue about

educating the public and helping them understand more about why certain decisions

are taken and what happens to the waste that goes to be recycled also came up in

the focus groups held in Presteigne in particular

There were some concerns about the potential smell of waste left for three weeks in

a wheeled bin ndash in particular things like pet waste nappies sanitary waste and dog

faeces which is generally put into wheeled bins There were also concerns about

flytipping

Some respondents called for the council to lobby the Welsh and Westminster

governmentrsquos about the cuts to funding and also to lobby and put pressure onto

manufacturers who produce a lot of unnecessary packaging

Other Responses

A further 20+ comments were received from residents via their local councillor from

a town and community council on behalf of their residents or from residents who

either emailed the council via the generic web site or a direct email address or who

rang to speak to an officer

These comments were all logged and analysed The majority resonated with the

views and concerns given by the wider sample and included comments on flytipping

health rats the impact on more urban towns confusion re a 3 weekly collection

cycle lack of garden waste collection storage and space issues operatives role in

keeping streets clean post a collection and comments regarding council tax and

value for money One resident suggested we consider electricity generation as in a

waste to energy plant and another request was made around better promotion and

communications regarding the whole reduce reuse and recycle ethos

Focus Groups

Some focus groups were also held in Presteige and Ystradgynlais with members of

the countyrsquos citizens panel to find out their views and concerns Presteigne

residents had been part of a Welsh Government project called Zero Waste a few

years ago and the majority had a 120 litre bin or purple sacks Residents in

Ystradgynlais were the first to receive the kerbside recycling service A focus group

for Welshpool was organised but only one person was able to attend so a telephone

interview was conducted instead with this resident The full findings will be included

in the final report but are summed up here

Presteigne focus group members were not overly concerned about moving to a three

weekly service but wanted to see better information advice and communications

around why we did and didnrsquot take certain materials and what residents can and

canrsquot recycle using the kerbside boxes and other outlets like the community recycling

sites and the household waste recycling centres They wanted Powys to promote

and make recycling as easy as possible They thought that the council should

assume people could cope with three weekly unless they stated otherwise and

thought residents should try the new service first and then be assessed if they

couldnrsquot manage with the bin they had They thought more could be done at

community recycling sites to allow residents to take other things there for recycling

Batteries and small electrical products were mentioned

Ystradgynlais focus group members felt it was easy to recycle overall but the boxes

were a bit cumbersome and some wanted more as theirs were full up Crews were

praised There were concerns expressed around communal bins for residents in

flats These were full up very quickly and perhaps used by other residents other than

those living in the flats to dispose of extra waste Storage was an issue for those

living in smaller homes and flats and the issue about getting older and putting out

heavy bins and boxes was expressed People felt they were happy to do their bit to

recycle but some families would struggle and need help and extra capacity

The telephone conversation with the Welshpool resident was based around the

difficulties faced by those living in a rural setting and the use of purple sacks and

communal collection points The gentleman had suggestions around better

communications and using the refuse crews to deliver regular flyers and information

to assist residents with their recycling

Conclusions

The purpose of the consultation was to seek and capture views from residents about

how easy they found it to recycle certain items of their household waste currently using the kerbside service (glass cardboard paper certain plastics and food)

how full up their wheeled bin was currently when due a fortnightly collection

what if any concerns they may have about a move to a three weekly refuse collection service

how the council might be able to mitigate for certain households who are more likely to produce more waste based on their personal circumstances (large families residents with incontinence waste to dispose of etc

The feedback received from the consultation will help the service

Understand what concerns households have regarding both the recycling and refuse collection service

Work to address said concerns wherever possible through targeted support and visits to householders who want some help or advice clear generic communications and information via the website posters letters and publicity

A note about market research and consultations

When conducting market research companies use a margin of error and confidence level to ensure that their results are robust and representative of the population they are seeking views from (the population of interest) A consultation however isnrsquot market research as people choose to respond and are not contacted using a sampling methodology People self-select so sometimes when conducting a consultation you only hear the views of the people who are either strongly in favour or strongly object to a proposal The silent majority may not have given a view However when we analyse any consultation results we do consider how robust they are in terms of the population of interest Powys has around 60000 households and a population of around 130000 Every household has the refuse collection and recycling service in one form or another so the population of interest is 60000 To get a robust and representative view of the population as a whole - using an market industry calculator ndash we needed over a thousand households to respond to the survey With 1781 householders responding minus the two Town and Community councils (1779) we can be 95 confident that the views given represent those of Powys households as a whole within a margin of error of 3 This means that as in question 3 where we ask people how easy they find it to recycle and 34 state ldquovery easyrdquo we can be sure that if we repeated the survey the results would be between the range of 31 and 37 When conducting consultation exercise Powys County Council works to the National Principles for Public Engagement in Wales httpwwwparticipationcymruorguknational-principles

Three quarters full (75) 235 17

Full up (100) 916 65

BASE 1410 100

No answer 371

Total sample 1781

The table above shows that nearly two thirds of respondents said that their wheeled bin was currently full up when they were due a collection Just under a fifth said their bin was three quarters full Interestingly when you look at the total number of respondents per household type against those that said their bin was full up on collection day it is clear that the vast majority fall into either the large family or the families with two or more children in nappies categories In the table on the next page 100 out of the 108 large families who answered the survey (93) stated their wheeled bin was full up when due a collection on the current fortnightly service whilst 131 out of the 147 families who had two or more children in nappies (89) said their bin was full up too This shows a clear need for additional capacity when the council moves to three weekly collections for these particular households Similarly 80 of residents who have incontinence waste to dispose of were in the same situation Conversely only around a third of householders (38) who chose to have the smallest wheeled bin possible (the 120litre size) said theirs was full up once a fortnight suggesting that their non-recyclable waste must be very minimal For those who had a standard size 180 litre capacity wheeled bin 58 said it was full

HouseholdBin type Total no of responses

Number who felt their bin was 100 full when due a collection

Large family 108 100

2+ more children in nappies 147 131

Incontinence waste to dispose of 106 85

120 litre bin (small wheeled bin) 157 59

180 litre bin (standard size) 928 539

Total number of households who identified themselves into the categories given

1446 914

The chart here shows where respondents with a 120 litre bin live

Note Residents with purple sacks were not asked this question but a similar question to try and gauge how many bags they were putting out on a fortnightly basis This explains why the total figure given in the chart is 1446 as 197 residents stated they were on purple sacks and the remainder (138) didnrsquot choose a category ndash they chose lsquootherrsquo to describe their household

Q4a When we go to a three weekly rubbish collection do you think yoursquoll be able to manage with the bin yoursquove got

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 263 19

Not sure 217 15

No 924 66

BASE 1404 100

No answer 377

Total sample 1781

In total 1404 respondents out of a possible 1446 who had stated their household type and thus had a wheeled bin of some description answered this follow up question about whether they thought they could manage with the bin they had when the council moved to a three weekly service The table above shows that just under 20 (a fifth) thought they would manage 15 were not sure at this stage and two thirds or 66 didnrsquot think they could manage with their current wheeled bin Not surprisingly 818 of the 924 respondents shown in the above table had stated that their bin was currently full up when they were due a fortnightly collection On this basis itrsquos not surprising that they would feel that there was no more room in their bin for another weekrsquos worth of waste and thus wouldnrsquot manage Again the results showed that predominantly those feeling they

1910

27

3 1 6 3 5 3 1 2 5 1 19

224 4 2

10 11 7 1

157

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

12

0 li

tre

bin

byhellip

LD1

LD2

LD3

LD4

LD5

LD6

LD7

LD8

HR

3

HR

5

NP

8

SA9

SA1

0

SY1

0

SY1

5

SY1

6

SY1

7

SY1

8

SY1

9

SY2

0

SY2

1

SY2

2

No

po

stco

de

Tota

l

Respondents with a 120 litre bin by postcode

wouldnrsquot cope were large families families with children in nappies and those with incontinence waste to dispose of However 473 residents who currently have a standard 180litre bin also felt they wouldnrsquot be able to cope Interestingly there were five respondents who although theyrsquod stated that their 180litre bin was full up when due a collection in the previous question had perhaps reconsidered what they recycled and what they put in their wheeled bin currently because they answered lsquoyesrsquo they would manage on a three weekly cycle No other resident type who had stated their wheeled bin was already full had done so although 55 residents with a 180 litre bin had chosen lsquonot surersquo as their option suggesting that they would reserve judgement and see how a three weekly service worked for them in practice Q4b On average how many purple sacks do you put out currently on the fortnightly service 197 respondents identified themselves as being on purple sacks rather than having a wheeled bin There are a number of reasons why householders are either given or request this alternative provision Predominantly it can be because they donrsquot have space for a wheeled bin they live in a flat they live on a steep incline so a wheeled bin isnrsquot suitable or they live in a rural setting and have a shared residual waste collection point (for some people this can be down a track so in essence itrsquos not possible for a refuse lorry to get down to a property and equally residents wouldnrsquot want to attempt to wheel a bin up to said collection point

As can be seen in the bar chart above the vast majority of the 197 respondents put out just or two bags a fortnight Only 3 people said they tended to put out more than four bags a fortnight

Series10

50

100

150

200

1 2 3 4 4+ No ans Total

72 77

316 3 8

197

No of purple bags put out for collection per fortnight

Q4c When we go three weekly do you think yoursquoll manage as you are doing currently 189 out of the 197 on purple sacks responded to this follow up question with just over a third (37) stating yes they would manage but 63 feeling they wouldnrsquot

The next series of questions focused on the different household types and what the council was considering in terms of mitigations and extra capacity Q5 For large families consisting of six people or more you should currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly if you couldnrsquot fit all your non-recyclable waste into the bin we are considering the following Please state which you would prefer

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 4

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 34

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 12

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 52

Total 102

Out of the 108 residents who stated they were a large family 102 answered this question Overall it appears that for residents with a 180 litre bin the preference was to swap to a bigger 240litre bin Equally those that were already on a 240litrre bin would rather have an additional smaller 120litre bin However purple sacks were the preferred choice for some but the numbers were lower Q6 For families with 2 or more children in nappies you may currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly we are considering a free nappy collection scheme (frequency to be determined but likely to be weekly or fortnightly)

37

63

of respondents on purple sacks

Yes No

which would allow you to dispose of your nappies and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste Would this help 147 respondents had stated that they were in the position of having two or more children in nappies currently 139 of them chose to answer this question 70 felt a free and additional nappy collection service would be a help

The same respondents were then asked a follow up question Q6a If there was a nappy collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks Five of the 139 respondents who answered Q6 chose not to answer this follow up question leaving 134 responses The results showed that 60 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage with their current bin and an extra nappy collection service 40 felt they would be able to manage with six householders also happy to consider swapping back from a 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 48 36

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

6 4

No 80 60

Total 134 100

Finally the same respondents (families with 2 or more children in nappies) were asked one more question

0

20

40

60

80

100

Yes No

70

30

Chart Title

Q6b If the nappy service isnrsquot deemed viable for Powys then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 6

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 42

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 24

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 47

Total 119

119 families answered this final question As was the case for the larger families the preference for those with a 180litre bin was clearly to move to a 240litre wheeled bin instead Those families who were already on the larger bin were more likely to want an extra 120litre bin if there were no nappy collection scheme on offer but 24 did say theyrsquod prefer a roll of purple sacks instead Q7 For households where someone has incontinence waste or similar eg incontinence pads or colostomy bags you may have either a 180litre (standard size) or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly wersquod like to be able to offer a free incontinence wastenappy collection scheme (frequency to be agreed but likely to be weekly or fortnightly) This would allow you to dispose of some of your waste and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste (This scheme would not include colostomy bags) Would this help 106 residents stated they had incontinence waste to dispose of However only 85 choose to answer this first specific question about the proposals around three weekly collections 56 were interested in a free service whilst 29 were not

The same respondents were then asked a similar question as those families with children in nappies

56

29

Interest in incontinence collection scheme

Yes No

Q7a If there was a collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks One more person choose to answer this question so 86 respondents gave a view The results showed that 50 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage but 50 did Looking at the 50 who felt confident 10 of these residents said they were happy to consider swapping back from their current 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 34 40

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

9 10

No 43 50

Total 86 100

Q7b If the service isnrsquot deemed viable then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household 81 out of the 86 respondents who had answered the previous question gave a view on what might work best for them Again there appears to be a preference by residents for an extra bin rather than purple sacks

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 28

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 27

Total 81

Q8 For households who opted for a 120litre bin there is an option to swap to a bigger 180litre bin or to stay as you are if you felt you didnrsquot have much non-recyclable waste to dispose of Which would be your preferred option 157 residents had identified themselves as having a 120litre bin which is the smallest wheeled bin available 144 answered this question 57 were happy to stay on the 120litre bin they had already compared to 43 who wanted to swap to a 180litre bin when the council moved to a three weekly collection

Answer Count Percentage

Stick with the 120litre bin 82

Swap to a 180 litre bin 62

Total 144

Q10 Having considered your household situation and the plans being put forward do you have any major concerns about a change to a three weekly rubbish collection service

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 1358 80

No 336 20

Total 1694 100

This question was asked of all respondents 1694 out of the 1781 respondents answered this question The vast majority (80) had some concerns about the move to a three weekly refuse collection service and these concerns related to a number of issues Residents were asked to give details Q10a The top five concerns were

potential smell of waste after three weeks

vermin

fly tipping

capacity issues re storage andor more boxes

communications and information re- recycling

Q10b What about moving to a monthly rubbish collection service Would

you have any objections if you could store your non-recyclable waste in a

big enough bin

Respondents were given the choice of four answers Two were objecting to a move to four weekly and two were supporting this 1683 responses were received for this question Just under a fifth (19) felt a move to a monthly collection service either now or after the three weekly service had been rolled out for a while would not cause them a problem However 81 did object

Answer Count Percentage

No I wouldnrsquot object It makes sense to go monthly and make the savings now rather than going 3 weekly and then monthly

173 10

No I wouldnrsquot object Irsquod be happy to go three weekly first and then move to a monthly collection over time

145 9

Yes I do object I think expecting households to wait three weeks for a collection is too long ndash savings or no savings Find them elsewhere

626 37

Yes I do object I think our recycling and rubbish collection service are the things that council tax payers can see for their money and going monthly isnrsquot acceptable

739 44

Total 1683 100

Q11 If you have any final comments or suggestions about recyclingrubbish

collections that yoursquod like to make please do so here

Over a thousand comments were received These comments were quite varied and

ranged from residents objecting per se to three weekly collections to some calls for

the council to get much tougher and fine people for not recycling their waste

There were comments that more communications information and advice was

needed to help residents understand what can and canrsquot be recycled and why we are

no longer taking the softer type plastic wrappings or bags This issue about

educating the public and helping them understand more about why certain decisions

are taken and what happens to the waste that goes to be recycled also came up in

the focus groups held in Presteigne in particular

There were some concerns about the potential smell of waste left for three weeks in

a wheeled bin ndash in particular things like pet waste nappies sanitary waste and dog

faeces which is generally put into wheeled bins There were also concerns about

flytipping

Some respondents called for the council to lobby the Welsh and Westminster

governmentrsquos about the cuts to funding and also to lobby and put pressure onto

manufacturers who produce a lot of unnecessary packaging

Other Responses

A further 20+ comments were received from residents via their local councillor from

a town and community council on behalf of their residents or from residents who

either emailed the council via the generic web site or a direct email address or who

rang to speak to an officer

These comments were all logged and analysed The majority resonated with the

views and concerns given by the wider sample and included comments on flytipping

health rats the impact on more urban towns confusion re a 3 weekly collection

cycle lack of garden waste collection storage and space issues operatives role in

keeping streets clean post a collection and comments regarding council tax and

value for money One resident suggested we consider electricity generation as in a

waste to energy plant and another request was made around better promotion and

communications regarding the whole reduce reuse and recycle ethos

Focus Groups

Some focus groups were also held in Presteige and Ystradgynlais with members of

the countyrsquos citizens panel to find out their views and concerns Presteigne

residents had been part of a Welsh Government project called Zero Waste a few

years ago and the majority had a 120 litre bin or purple sacks Residents in

Ystradgynlais were the first to receive the kerbside recycling service A focus group

for Welshpool was organised but only one person was able to attend so a telephone

interview was conducted instead with this resident The full findings will be included

in the final report but are summed up here

Presteigne focus group members were not overly concerned about moving to a three

weekly service but wanted to see better information advice and communications

around why we did and didnrsquot take certain materials and what residents can and

canrsquot recycle using the kerbside boxes and other outlets like the community recycling

sites and the household waste recycling centres They wanted Powys to promote

and make recycling as easy as possible They thought that the council should

assume people could cope with three weekly unless they stated otherwise and

thought residents should try the new service first and then be assessed if they

couldnrsquot manage with the bin they had They thought more could be done at

community recycling sites to allow residents to take other things there for recycling

Batteries and small electrical products were mentioned

Ystradgynlais focus group members felt it was easy to recycle overall but the boxes

were a bit cumbersome and some wanted more as theirs were full up Crews were

praised There were concerns expressed around communal bins for residents in

flats These were full up very quickly and perhaps used by other residents other than

those living in the flats to dispose of extra waste Storage was an issue for those

living in smaller homes and flats and the issue about getting older and putting out

heavy bins and boxes was expressed People felt they were happy to do their bit to

recycle but some families would struggle and need help and extra capacity

The telephone conversation with the Welshpool resident was based around the

difficulties faced by those living in a rural setting and the use of purple sacks and

communal collection points The gentleman had suggestions around better

communications and using the refuse crews to deliver regular flyers and information

to assist residents with their recycling

Conclusions

The purpose of the consultation was to seek and capture views from residents about

how easy they found it to recycle certain items of their household waste currently using the kerbside service (glass cardboard paper certain plastics and food)

how full up their wheeled bin was currently when due a fortnightly collection

what if any concerns they may have about a move to a three weekly refuse collection service

how the council might be able to mitigate for certain households who are more likely to produce more waste based on their personal circumstances (large families residents with incontinence waste to dispose of etc

The feedback received from the consultation will help the service

Understand what concerns households have regarding both the recycling and refuse collection service

Work to address said concerns wherever possible through targeted support and visits to householders who want some help or advice clear generic communications and information via the website posters letters and publicity

A note about market research and consultations

When conducting market research companies use a margin of error and confidence level to ensure that their results are robust and representative of the population they are seeking views from (the population of interest) A consultation however isnrsquot market research as people choose to respond and are not contacted using a sampling methodology People self-select so sometimes when conducting a consultation you only hear the views of the people who are either strongly in favour or strongly object to a proposal The silent majority may not have given a view However when we analyse any consultation results we do consider how robust they are in terms of the population of interest Powys has around 60000 households and a population of around 130000 Every household has the refuse collection and recycling service in one form or another so the population of interest is 60000 To get a robust and representative view of the population as a whole - using an market industry calculator ndash we needed over a thousand households to respond to the survey With 1781 householders responding minus the two Town and Community councils (1779) we can be 95 confident that the views given represent those of Powys households as a whole within a margin of error of 3 This means that as in question 3 where we ask people how easy they find it to recycle and 34 state ldquovery easyrdquo we can be sure that if we repeated the survey the results would be between the range of 31 and 37 When conducting consultation exercise Powys County Council works to the National Principles for Public Engagement in Wales httpwwwparticipationcymruorguknational-principles

The chart here shows where respondents with a 120 litre bin live

Note Residents with purple sacks were not asked this question but a similar question to try and gauge how many bags they were putting out on a fortnightly basis This explains why the total figure given in the chart is 1446 as 197 residents stated they were on purple sacks and the remainder (138) didnrsquot choose a category ndash they chose lsquootherrsquo to describe their household

Q4a When we go to a three weekly rubbish collection do you think yoursquoll be able to manage with the bin yoursquove got

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 263 19

Not sure 217 15

No 924 66

BASE 1404 100

No answer 377

Total sample 1781

In total 1404 respondents out of a possible 1446 who had stated their household type and thus had a wheeled bin of some description answered this follow up question about whether they thought they could manage with the bin they had when the council moved to a three weekly service The table above shows that just under 20 (a fifth) thought they would manage 15 were not sure at this stage and two thirds or 66 didnrsquot think they could manage with their current wheeled bin Not surprisingly 818 of the 924 respondents shown in the above table had stated that their bin was currently full up when they were due a fortnightly collection On this basis itrsquos not surprising that they would feel that there was no more room in their bin for another weekrsquos worth of waste and thus wouldnrsquot manage Again the results showed that predominantly those feeling they

1910

27

3 1 6 3 5 3 1 2 5 1 19

224 4 2

10 11 7 1

157

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

12

0 li

tre

bin

byhellip

LD1

LD2

LD3

LD4

LD5

LD6

LD7

LD8

HR

3

HR

5

NP

8

SA9

SA1

0

SY1

0

SY1

5

SY1

6

SY1

7

SY1

8

SY1

9

SY2

0

SY2

1

SY2

2

No

po

stco

de

Tota

l

Respondents with a 120 litre bin by postcode

wouldnrsquot cope were large families families with children in nappies and those with incontinence waste to dispose of However 473 residents who currently have a standard 180litre bin also felt they wouldnrsquot be able to cope Interestingly there were five respondents who although theyrsquod stated that their 180litre bin was full up when due a collection in the previous question had perhaps reconsidered what they recycled and what they put in their wheeled bin currently because they answered lsquoyesrsquo they would manage on a three weekly cycle No other resident type who had stated their wheeled bin was already full had done so although 55 residents with a 180 litre bin had chosen lsquonot surersquo as their option suggesting that they would reserve judgement and see how a three weekly service worked for them in practice Q4b On average how many purple sacks do you put out currently on the fortnightly service 197 respondents identified themselves as being on purple sacks rather than having a wheeled bin There are a number of reasons why householders are either given or request this alternative provision Predominantly it can be because they donrsquot have space for a wheeled bin they live in a flat they live on a steep incline so a wheeled bin isnrsquot suitable or they live in a rural setting and have a shared residual waste collection point (for some people this can be down a track so in essence itrsquos not possible for a refuse lorry to get down to a property and equally residents wouldnrsquot want to attempt to wheel a bin up to said collection point

As can be seen in the bar chart above the vast majority of the 197 respondents put out just or two bags a fortnight Only 3 people said they tended to put out more than four bags a fortnight

Series10

50

100

150

200

1 2 3 4 4+ No ans Total

72 77

316 3 8

197

No of purple bags put out for collection per fortnight

Q4c When we go three weekly do you think yoursquoll manage as you are doing currently 189 out of the 197 on purple sacks responded to this follow up question with just over a third (37) stating yes they would manage but 63 feeling they wouldnrsquot

The next series of questions focused on the different household types and what the council was considering in terms of mitigations and extra capacity Q5 For large families consisting of six people or more you should currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly if you couldnrsquot fit all your non-recyclable waste into the bin we are considering the following Please state which you would prefer

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 4

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 34

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 12

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 52

Total 102

Out of the 108 residents who stated they were a large family 102 answered this question Overall it appears that for residents with a 180 litre bin the preference was to swap to a bigger 240litre bin Equally those that were already on a 240litrre bin would rather have an additional smaller 120litre bin However purple sacks were the preferred choice for some but the numbers were lower Q6 For families with 2 or more children in nappies you may currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly we are considering a free nappy collection scheme (frequency to be determined but likely to be weekly or fortnightly)

37

63

of respondents on purple sacks

Yes No

which would allow you to dispose of your nappies and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste Would this help 147 respondents had stated that they were in the position of having two or more children in nappies currently 139 of them chose to answer this question 70 felt a free and additional nappy collection service would be a help

The same respondents were then asked a follow up question Q6a If there was a nappy collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks Five of the 139 respondents who answered Q6 chose not to answer this follow up question leaving 134 responses The results showed that 60 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage with their current bin and an extra nappy collection service 40 felt they would be able to manage with six householders also happy to consider swapping back from a 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 48 36

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

6 4

No 80 60

Total 134 100

Finally the same respondents (families with 2 or more children in nappies) were asked one more question

0

20

40

60

80

100

Yes No

70

30

Chart Title

Q6b If the nappy service isnrsquot deemed viable for Powys then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 6

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 42

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 24

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 47

Total 119

119 families answered this final question As was the case for the larger families the preference for those with a 180litre bin was clearly to move to a 240litre wheeled bin instead Those families who were already on the larger bin were more likely to want an extra 120litre bin if there were no nappy collection scheme on offer but 24 did say theyrsquod prefer a roll of purple sacks instead Q7 For households where someone has incontinence waste or similar eg incontinence pads or colostomy bags you may have either a 180litre (standard size) or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly wersquod like to be able to offer a free incontinence wastenappy collection scheme (frequency to be agreed but likely to be weekly or fortnightly) This would allow you to dispose of some of your waste and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste (This scheme would not include colostomy bags) Would this help 106 residents stated they had incontinence waste to dispose of However only 85 choose to answer this first specific question about the proposals around three weekly collections 56 were interested in a free service whilst 29 were not

The same respondents were then asked a similar question as those families with children in nappies

56

29

Interest in incontinence collection scheme

Yes No

Q7a If there was a collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks One more person choose to answer this question so 86 respondents gave a view The results showed that 50 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage but 50 did Looking at the 50 who felt confident 10 of these residents said they were happy to consider swapping back from their current 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 34 40

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

9 10

No 43 50

Total 86 100

Q7b If the service isnrsquot deemed viable then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household 81 out of the 86 respondents who had answered the previous question gave a view on what might work best for them Again there appears to be a preference by residents for an extra bin rather than purple sacks

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 28

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 27

Total 81

Q8 For households who opted for a 120litre bin there is an option to swap to a bigger 180litre bin or to stay as you are if you felt you didnrsquot have much non-recyclable waste to dispose of Which would be your preferred option 157 residents had identified themselves as having a 120litre bin which is the smallest wheeled bin available 144 answered this question 57 were happy to stay on the 120litre bin they had already compared to 43 who wanted to swap to a 180litre bin when the council moved to a three weekly collection

Answer Count Percentage

Stick with the 120litre bin 82

Swap to a 180 litre bin 62

Total 144

Q10 Having considered your household situation and the plans being put forward do you have any major concerns about a change to a three weekly rubbish collection service

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 1358 80

No 336 20

Total 1694 100

This question was asked of all respondents 1694 out of the 1781 respondents answered this question The vast majority (80) had some concerns about the move to a three weekly refuse collection service and these concerns related to a number of issues Residents were asked to give details Q10a The top five concerns were

potential smell of waste after three weeks

vermin

fly tipping

capacity issues re storage andor more boxes

communications and information re- recycling

Q10b What about moving to a monthly rubbish collection service Would

you have any objections if you could store your non-recyclable waste in a

big enough bin

Respondents were given the choice of four answers Two were objecting to a move to four weekly and two were supporting this 1683 responses were received for this question Just under a fifth (19) felt a move to a monthly collection service either now or after the three weekly service had been rolled out for a while would not cause them a problem However 81 did object

Answer Count Percentage

No I wouldnrsquot object It makes sense to go monthly and make the savings now rather than going 3 weekly and then monthly

173 10

No I wouldnrsquot object Irsquod be happy to go three weekly first and then move to a monthly collection over time

145 9

Yes I do object I think expecting households to wait three weeks for a collection is too long ndash savings or no savings Find them elsewhere

626 37

Yes I do object I think our recycling and rubbish collection service are the things that council tax payers can see for their money and going monthly isnrsquot acceptable

739 44

Total 1683 100

Q11 If you have any final comments or suggestions about recyclingrubbish

collections that yoursquod like to make please do so here

Over a thousand comments were received These comments were quite varied and

ranged from residents objecting per se to three weekly collections to some calls for

the council to get much tougher and fine people for not recycling their waste

There were comments that more communications information and advice was

needed to help residents understand what can and canrsquot be recycled and why we are

no longer taking the softer type plastic wrappings or bags This issue about

educating the public and helping them understand more about why certain decisions

are taken and what happens to the waste that goes to be recycled also came up in

the focus groups held in Presteigne in particular

There were some concerns about the potential smell of waste left for three weeks in

a wheeled bin ndash in particular things like pet waste nappies sanitary waste and dog

faeces which is generally put into wheeled bins There were also concerns about

flytipping

Some respondents called for the council to lobby the Welsh and Westminster

governmentrsquos about the cuts to funding and also to lobby and put pressure onto

manufacturers who produce a lot of unnecessary packaging

Other Responses

A further 20+ comments were received from residents via their local councillor from

a town and community council on behalf of their residents or from residents who

either emailed the council via the generic web site or a direct email address or who

rang to speak to an officer

These comments were all logged and analysed The majority resonated with the

views and concerns given by the wider sample and included comments on flytipping

health rats the impact on more urban towns confusion re a 3 weekly collection

cycle lack of garden waste collection storage and space issues operatives role in

keeping streets clean post a collection and comments regarding council tax and

value for money One resident suggested we consider electricity generation as in a

waste to energy plant and another request was made around better promotion and

communications regarding the whole reduce reuse and recycle ethos

Focus Groups

Some focus groups were also held in Presteige and Ystradgynlais with members of

the countyrsquos citizens panel to find out their views and concerns Presteigne

residents had been part of a Welsh Government project called Zero Waste a few

years ago and the majority had a 120 litre bin or purple sacks Residents in

Ystradgynlais were the first to receive the kerbside recycling service A focus group

for Welshpool was organised but only one person was able to attend so a telephone

interview was conducted instead with this resident The full findings will be included

in the final report but are summed up here

Presteigne focus group members were not overly concerned about moving to a three

weekly service but wanted to see better information advice and communications

around why we did and didnrsquot take certain materials and what residents can and

canrsquot recycle using the kerbside boxes and other outlets like the community recycling

sites and the household waste recycling centres They wanted Powys to promote

and make recycling as easy as possible They thought that the council should

assume people could cope with three weekly unless they stated otherwise and

thought residents should try the new service first and then be assessed if they

couldnrsquot manage with the bin they had They thought more could be done at

community recycling sites to allow residents to take other things there for recycling

Batteries and small electrical products were mentioned

Ystradgynlais focus group members felt it was easy to recycle overall but the boxes

were a bit cumbersome and some wanted more as theirs were full up Crews were

praised There were concerns expressed around communal bins for residents in

flats These were full up very quickly and perhaps used by other residents other than

those living in the flats to dispose of extra waste Storage was an issue for those

living in smaller homes and flats and the issue about getting older and putting out

heavy bins and boxes was expressed People felt they were happy to do their bit to

recycle but some families would struggle and need help and extra capacity

The telephone conversation with the Welshpool resident was based around the

difficulties faced by those living in a rural setting and the use of purple sacks and

communal collection points The gentleman had suggestions around better

communications and using the refuse crews to deliver regular flyers and information

to assist residents with their recycling

Conclusions

The purpose of the consultation was to seek and capture views from residents about

how easy they found it to recycle certain items of their household waste currently using the kerbside service (glass cardboard paper certain plastics and food)

how full up their wheeled bin was currently when due a fortnightly collection

what if any concerns they may have about a move to a three weekly refuse collection service

how the council might be able to mitigate for certain households who are more likely to produce more waste based on their personal circumstances (large families residents with incontinence waste to dispose of etc

The feedback received from the consultation will help the service

Understand what concerns households have regarding both the recycling and refuse collection service

Work to address said concerns wherever possible through targeted support and visits to householders who want some help or advice clear generic communications and information via the website posters letters and publicity

A note about market research and consultations

When conducting market research companies use a margin of error and confidence level to ensure that their results are robust and representative of the population they are seeking views from (the population of interest) A consultation however isnrsquot market research as people choose to respond and are not contacted using a sampling methodology People self-select so sometimes when conducting a consultation you only hear the views of the people who are either strongly in favour or strongly object to a proposal The silent majority may not have given a view However when we analyse any consultation results we do consider how robust they are in terms of the population of interest Powys has around 60000 households and a population of around 130000 Every household has the refuse collection and recycling service in one form or another so the population of interest is 60000 To get a robust and representative view of the population as a whole - using an market industry calculator ndash we needed over a thousand households to respond to the survey With 1781 householders responding minus the two Town and Community councils (1779) we can be 95 confident that the views given represent those of Powys households as a whole within a margin of error of 3 This means that as in question 3 where we ask people how easy they find it to recycle and 34 state ldquovery easyrdquo we can be sure that if we repeated the survey the results would be between the range of 31 and 37 When conducting consultation exercise Powys County Council works to the National Principles for Public Engagement in Wales httpwwwparticipationcymruorguknational-principles

wouldnrsquot cope were large families families with children in nappies and those with incontinence waste to dispose of However 473 residents who currently have a standard 180litre bin also felt they wouldnrsquot be able to cope Interestingly there were five respondents who although theyrsquod stated that their 180litre bin was full up when due a collection in the previous question had perhaps reconsidered what they recycled and what they put in their wheeled bin currently because they answered lsquoyesrsquo they would manage on a three weekly cycle No other resident type who had stated their wheeled bin was already full had done so although 55 residents with a 180 litre bin had chosen lsquonot surersquo as their option suggesting that they would reserve judgement and see how a three weekly service worked for them in practice Q4b On average how many purple sacks do you put out currently on the fortnightly service 197 respondents identified themselves as being on purple sacks rather than having a wheeled bin There are a number of reasons why householders are either given or request this alternative provision Predominantly it can be because they donrsquot have space for a wheeled bin they live in a flat they live on a steep incline so a wheeled bin isnrsquot suitable or they live in a rural setting and have a shared residual waste collection point (for some people this can be down a track so in essence itrsquos not possible for a refuse lorry to get down to a property and equally residents wouldnrsquot want to attempt to wheel a bin up to said collection point

As can be seen in the bar chart above the vast majority of the 197 respondents put out just or two bags a fortnight Only 3 people said they tended to put out more than four bags a fortnight

Series10

50

100

150

200

1 2 3 4 4+ No ans Total

72 77

316 3 8

197

No of purple bags put out for collection per fortnight

Q4c When we go three weekly do you think yoursquoll manage as you are doing currently 189 out of the 197 on purple sacks responded to this follow up question with just over a third (37) stating yes they would manage but 63 feeling they wouldnrsquot

The next series of questions focused on the different household types and what the council was considering in terms of mitigations and extra capacity Q5 For large families consisting of six people or more you should currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly if you couldnrsquot fit all your non-recyclable waste into the bin we are considering the following Please state which you would prefer

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 4

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 34

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 12

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 52

Total 102

Out of the 108 residents who stated they were a large family 102 answered this question Overall it appears that for residents with a 180 litre bin the preference was to swap to a bigger 240litre bin Equally those that were already on a 240litrre bin would rather have an additional smaller 120litre bin However purple sacks were the preferred choice for some but the numbers were lower Q6 For families with 2 or more children in nappies you may currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly we are considering a free nappy collection scheme (frequency to be determined but likely to be weekly or fortnightly)

37

63

of respondents on purple sacks

Yes No

which would allow you to dispose of your nappies and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste Would this help 147 respondents had stated that they were in the position of having two or more children in nappies currently 139 of them chose to answer this question 70 felt a free and additional nappy collection service would be a help

The same respondents were then asked a follow up question Q6a If there was a nappy collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks Five of the 139 respondents who answered Q6 chose not to answer this follow up question leaving 134 responses The results showed that 60 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage with their current bin and an extra nappy collection service 40 felt they would be able to manage with six householders also happy to consider swapping back from a 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 48 36

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

6 4

No 80 60

Total 134 100

Finally the same respondents (families with 2 or more children in nappies) were asked one more question

0

20

40

60

80

100

Yes No

70

30

Chart Title

Q6b If the nappy service isnrsquot deemed viable for Powys then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 6

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 42

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 24

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 47

Total 119

119 families answered this final question As was the case for the larger families the preference for those with a 180litre bin was clearly to move to a 240litre wheeled bin instead Those families who were already on the larger bin were more likely to want an extra 120litre bin if there were no nappy collection scheme on offer but 24 did say theyrsquod prefer a roll of purple sacks instead Q7 For households where someone has incontinence waste or similar eg incontinence pads or colostomy bags you may have either a 180litre (standard size) or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly wersquod like to be able to offer a free incontinence wastenappy collection scheme (frequency to be agreed but likely to be weekly or fortnightly) This would allow you to dispose of some of your waste and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste (This scheme would not include colostomy bags) Would this help 106 residents stated they had incontinence waste to dispose of However only 85 choose to answer this first specific question about the proposals around three weekly collections 56 were interested in a free service whilst 29 were not

The same respondents were then asked a similar question as those families with children in nappies

56

29

Interest in incontinence collection scheme

Yes No

Q7a If there was a collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks One more person choose to answer this question so 86 respondents gave a view The results showed that 50 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage but 50 did Looking at the 50 who felt confident 10 of these residents said they were happy to consider swapping back from their current 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 34 40

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

9 10

No 43 50

Total 86 100

Q7b If the service isnrsquot deemed viable then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household 81 out of the 86 respondents who had answered the previous question gave a view on what might work best for them Again there appears to be a preference by residents for an extra bin rather than purple sacks

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 28

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 27

Total 81

Q8 For households who opted for a 120litre bin there is an option to swap to a bigger 180litre bin or to stay as you are if you felt you didnrsquot have much non-recyclable waste to dispose of Which would be your preferred option 157 residents had identified themselves as having a 120litre bin which is the smallest wheeled bin available 144 answered this question 57 were happy to stay on the 120litre bin they had already compared to 43 who wanted to swap to a 180litre bin when the council moved to a three weekly collection

Answer Count Percentage

Stick with the 120litre bin 82

Swap to a 180 litre bin 62

Total 144

Q10 Having considered your household situation and the plans being put forward do you have any major concerns about a change to a three weekly rubbish collection service

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 1358 80

No 336 20

Total 1694 100

This question was asked of all respondents 1694 out of the 1781 respondents answered this question The vast majority (80) had some concerns about the move to a three weekly refuse collection service and these concerns related to a number of issues Residents were asked to give details Q10a The top five concerns were

potential smell of waste after three weeks

vermin

fly tipping

capacity issues re storage andor more boxes

communications and information re- recycling

Q10b What about moving to a monthly rubbish collection service Would

you have any objections if you could store your non-recyclable waste in a

big enough bin

Respondents were given the choice of four answers Two were objecting to a move to four weekly and two were supporting this 1683 responses were received for this question Just under a fifth (19) felt a move to a monthly collection service either now or after the three weekly service had been rolled out for a while would not cause them a problem However 81 did object

Answer Count Percentage

No I wouldnrsquot object It makes sense to go monthly and make the savings now rather than going 3 weekly and then monthly

173 10

No I wouldnrsquot object Irsquod be happy to go three weekly first and then move to a monthly collection over time

145 9

Yes I do object I think expecting households to wait three weeks for a collection is too long ndash savings or no savings Find them elsewhere

626 37

Yes I do object I think our recycling and rubbish collection service are the things that council tax payers can see for their money and going monthly isnrsquot acceptable

739 44

Total 1683 100

Q11 If you have any final comments or suggestions about recyclingrubbish

collections that yoursquod like to make please do so here

Over a thousand comments were received These comments were quite varied and

ranged from residents objecting per se to three weekly collections to some calls for

the council to get much tougher and fine people for not recycling their waste

There were comments that more communications information and advice was

needed to help residents understand what can and canrsquot be recycled and why we are

no longer taking the softer type plastic wrappings or bags This issue about

educating the public and helping them understand more about why certain decisions

are taken and what happens to the waste that goes to be recycled also came up in

the focus groups held in Presteigne in particular

There were some concerns about the potential smell of waste left for three weeks in

a wheeled bin ndash in particular things like pet waste nappies sanitary waste and dog

faeces which is generally put into wheeled bins There were also concerns about

flytipping

Some respondents called for the council to lobby the Welsh and Westminster

governmentrsquos about the cuts to funding and also to lobby and put pressure onto

manufacturers who produce a lot of unnecessary packaging

Other Responses

A further 20+ comments were received from residents via their local councillor from

a town and community council on behalf of their residents or from residents who

either emailed the council via the generic web site or a direct email address or who

rang to speak to an officer

These comments were all logged and analysed The majority resonated with the

views and concerns given by the wider sample and included comments on flytipping

health rats the impact on more urban towns confusion re a 3 weekly collection

cycle lack of garden waste collection storage and space issues operatives role in

keeping streets clean post a collection and comments regarding council tax and

value for money One resident suggested we consider electricity generation as in a

waste to energy plant and another request was made around better promotion and

communications regarding the whole reduce reuse and recycle ethos

Focus Groups

Some focus groups were also held in Presteige and Ystradgynlais with members of

the countyrsquos citizens panel to find out their views and concerns Presteigne

residents had been part of a Welsh Government project called Zero Waste a few

years ago and the majority had a 120 litre bin or purple sacks Residents in

Ystradgynlais were the first to receive the kerbside recycling service A focus group

for Welshpool was organised but only one person was able to attend so a telephone

interview was conducted instead with this resident The full findings will be included

in the final report but are summed up here

Presteigne focus group members were not overly concerned about moving to a three

weekly service but wanted to see better information advice and communications

around why we did and didnrsquot take certain materials and what residents can and

canrsquot recycle using the kerbside boxes and other outlets like the community recycling

sites and the household waste recycling centres They wanted Powys to promote

and make recycling as easy as possible They thought that the council should

assume people could cope with three weekly unless they stated otherwise and

thought residents should try the new service first and then be assessed if they

couldnrsquot manage with the bin they had They thought more could be done at

community recycling sites to allow residents to take other things there for recycling

Batteries and small electrical products were mentioned

Ystradgynlais focus group members felt it was easy to recycle overall but the boxes

were a bit cumbersome and some wanted more as theirs were full up Crews were

praised There were concerns expressed around communal bins for residents in

flats These were full up very quickly and perhaps used by other residents other than

those living in the flats to dispose of extra waste Storage was an issue for those

living in smaller homes and flats and the issue about getting older and putting out

heavy bins and boxes was expressed People felt they were happy to do their bit to

recycle but some families would struggle and need help and extra capacity

The telephone conversation with the Welshpool resident was based around the

difficulties faced by those living in a rural setting and the use of purple sacks and

communal collection points The gentleman had suggestions around better

communications and using the refuse crews to deliver regular flyers and information

to assist residents with their recycling

Conclusions

The purpose of the consultation was to seek and capture views from residents about

how easy they found it to recycle certain items of their household waste currently using the kerbside service (glass cardboard paper certain plastics and food)

how full up their wheeled bin was currently when due a fortnightly collection

what if any concerns they may have about a move to a three weekly refuse collection service

how the council might be able to mitigate for certain households who are more likely to produce more waste based on their personal circumstances (large families residents with incontinence waste to dispose of etc

The feedback received from the consultation will help the service

Understand what concerns households have regarding both the recycling and refuse collection service

Work to address said concerns wherever possible through targeted support and visits to householders who want some help or advice clear generic communications and information via the website posters letters and publicity

A note about market research and consultations

When conducting market research companies use a margin of error and confidence level to ensure that their results are robust and representative of the population they are seeking views from (the population of interest) A consultation however isnrsquot market research as people choose to respond and are not contacted using a sampling methodology People self-select so sometimes when conducting a consultation you only hear the views of the people who are either strongly in favour or strongly object to a proposal The silent majority may not have given a view However when we analyse any consultation results we do consider how robust they are in terms of the population of interest Powys has around 60000 households and a population of around 130000 Every household has the refuse collection and recycling service in one form or another so the population of interest is 60000 To get a robust and representative view of the population as a whole - using an market industry calculator ndash we needed over a thousand households to respond to the survey With 1781 householders responding minus the two Town and Community councils (1779) we can be 95 confident that the views given represent those of Powys households as a whole within a margin of error of 3 This means that as in question 3 where we ask people how easy they find it to recycle and 34 state ldquovery easyrdquo we can be sure that if we repeated the survey the results would be between the range of 31 and 37 When conducting consultation exercise Powys County Council works to the National Principles for Public Engagement in Wales httpwwwparticipationcymruorguknational-principles

Q4c When we go three weekly do you think yoursquoll manage as you are doing currently 189 out of the 197 on purple sacks responded to this follow up question with just over a third (37) stating yes they would manage but 63 feeling they wouldnrsquot

The next series of questions focused on the different household types and what the council was considering in terms of mitigations and extra capacity Q5 For large families consisting of six people or more you should currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly if you couldnrsquot fit all your non-recyclable waste into the bin we are considering the following Please state which you would prefer

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 4

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 34

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 12

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 52

Total 102

Out of the 108 residents who stated they were a large family 102 answered this question Overall it appears that for residents with a 180 litre bin the preference was to swap to a bigger 240litre bin Equally those that were already on a 240litrre bin would rather have an additional smaller 120litre bin However purple sacks were the preferred choice for some but the numbers were lower Q6 For families with 2 or more children in nappies you may currently have either a 180litre (standard size) bin or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly we are considering a free nappy collection scheme (frequency to be determined but likely to be weekly or fortnightly)

37

63

of respondents on purple sacks

Yes No

which would allow you to dispose of your nappies and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste Would this help 147 respondents had stated that they were in the position of having two or more children in nappies currently 139 of them chose to answer this question 70 felt a free and additional nappy collection service would be a help

The same respondents were then asked a follow up question Q6a If there was a nappy collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks Five of the 139 respondents who answered Q6 chose not to answer this follow up question leaving 134 responses The results showed that 60 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage with their current bin and an extra nappy collection service 40 felt they would be able to manage with six householders also happy to consider swapping back from a 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 48 36

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

6 4

No 80 60

Total 134 100

Finally the same respondents (families with 2 or more children in nappies) were asked one more question

0

20

40

60

80

100

Yes No

70

30

Chart Title

Q6b If the nappy service isnrsquot deemed viable for Powys then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 6

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 42

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 24

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 47

Total 119

119 families answered this final question As was the case for the larger families the preference for those with a 180litre bin was clearly to move to a 240litre wheeled bin instead Those families who were already on the larger bin were more likely to want an extra 120litre bin if there were no nappy collection scheme on offer but 24 did say theyrsquod prefer a roll of purple sacks instead Q7 For households where someone has incontinence waste or similar eg incontinence pads or colostomy bags you may have either a 180litre (standard size) or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly wersquod like to be able to offer a free incontinence wastenappy collection scheme (frequency to be agreed but likely to be weekly or fortnightly) This would allow you to dispose of some of your waste and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste (This scheme would not include colostomy bags) Would this help 106 residents stated they had incontinence waste to dispose of However only 85 choose to answer this first specific question about the proposals around three weekly collections 56 were interested in a free service whilst 29 were not

The same respondents were then asked a similar question as those families with children in nappies

56

29

Interest in incontinence collection scheme

Yes No

Q7a If there was a collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks One more person choose to answer this question so 86 respondents gave a view The results showed that 50 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage but 50 did Looking at the 50 who felt confident 10 of these residents said they were happy to consider swapping back from their current 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 34 40

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

9 10

No 43 50

Total 86 100

Q7b If the service isnrsquot deemed viable then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household 81 out of the 86 respondents who had answered the previous question gave a view on what might work best for them Again there appears to be a preference by residents for an extra bin rather than purple sacks

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 28

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 27

Total 81

Q8 For households who opted for a 120litre bin there is an option to swap to a bigger 180litre bin or to stay as you are if you felt you didnrsquot have much non-recyclable waste to dispose of Which would be your preferred option 157 residents had identified themselves as having a 120litre bin which is the smallest wheeled bin available 144 answered this question 57 were happy to stay on the 120litre bin they had already compared to 43 who wanted to swap to a 180litre bin when the council moved to a three weekly collection

Answer Count Percentage

Stick with the 120litre bin 82

Swap to a 180 litre bin 62

Total 144

Q10 Having considered your household situation and the plans being put forward do you have any major concerns about a change to a three weekly rubbish collection service

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 1358 80

No 336 20

Total 1694 100

This question was asked of all respondents 1694 out of the 1781 respondents answered this question The vast majority (80) had some concerns about the move to a three weekly refuse collection service and these concerns related to a number of issues Residents were asked to give details Q10a The top five concerns were

potential smell of waste after three weeks

vermin

fly tipping

capacity issues re storage andor more boxes

communications and information re- recycling

Q10b What about moving to a monthly rubbish collection service Would

you have any objections if you could store your non-recyclable waste in a

big enough bin

Respondents were given the choice of four answers Two were objecting to a move to four weekly and two were supporting this 1683 responses were received for this question Just under a fifth (19) felt a move to a monthly collection service either now or after the three weekly service had been rolled out for a while would not cause them a problem However 81 did object

Answer Count Percentage

No I wouldnrsquot object It makes sense to go monthly and make the savings now rather than going 3 weekly and then monthly

173 10

No I wouldnrsquot object Irsquod be happy to go three weekly first and then move to a monthly collection over time

145 9

Yes I do object I think expecting households to wait three weeks for a collection is too long ndash savings or no savings Find them elsewhere

626 37

Yes I do object I think our recycling and rubbish collection service are the things that council tax payers can see for their money and going monthly isnrsquot acceptable

739 44

Total 1683 100

Q11 If you have any final comments or suggestions about recyclingrubbish

collections that yoursquod like to make please do so here

Over a thousand comments were received These comments were quite varied and

ranged from residents objecting per se to three weekly collections to some calls for

the council to get much tougher and fine people for not recycling their waste

There were comments that more communications information and advice was

needed to help residents understand what can and canrsquot be recycled and why we are

no longer taking the softer type plastic wrappings or bags This issue about

educating the public and helping them understand more about why certain decisions

are taken and what happens to the waste that goes to be recycled also came up in

the focus groups held in Presteigne in particular

There were some concerns about the potential smell of waste left for three weeks in

a wheeled bin ndash in particular things like pet waste nappies sanitary waste and dog

faeces which is generally put into wheeled bins There were also concerns about

flytipping

Some respondents called for the council to lobby the Welsh and Westminster

governmentrsquos about the cuts to funding and also to lobby and put pressure onto

manufacturers who produce a lot of unnecessary packaging

Other Responses

A further 20+ comments were received from residents via their local councillor from

a town and community council on behalf of their residents or from residents who

either emailed the council via the generic web site or a direct email address or who

rang to speak to an officer

These comments were all logged and analysed The majority resonated with the

views and concerns given by the wider sample and included comments on flytipping

health rats the impact on more urban towns confusion re a 3 weekly collection

cycle lack of garden waste collection storage and space issues operatives role in

keeping streets clean post a collection and comments regarding council tax and

value for money One resident suggested we consider electricity generation as in a

waste to energy plant and another request was made around better promotion and

communications regarding the whole reduce reuse and recycle ethos

Focus Groups

Some focus groups were also held in Presteige and Ystradgynlais with members of

the countyrsquos citizens panel to find out their views and concerns Presteigne

residents had been part of a Welsh Government project called Zero Waste a few

years ago and the majority had a 120 litre bin or purple sacks Residents in

Ystradgynlais were the first to receive the kerbside recycling service A focus group

for Welshpool was organised but only one person was able to attend so a telephone

interview was conducted instead with this resident The full findings will be included

in the final report but are summed up here

Presteigne focus group members were not overly concerned about moving to a three

weekly service but wanted to see better information advice and communications

around why we did and didnrsquot take certain materials and what residents can and

canrsquot recycle using the kerbside boxes and other outlets like the community recycling

sites and the household waste recycling centres They wanted Powys to promote

and make recycling as easy as possible They thought that the council should

assume people could cope with three weekly unless they stated otherwise and

thought residents should try the new service first and then be assessed if they

couldnrsquot manage with the bin they had They thought more could be done at

community recycling sites to allow residents to take other things there for recycling

Batteries and small electrical products were mentioned

Ystradgynlais focus group members felt it was easy to recycle overall but the boxes

were a bit cumbersome and some wanted more as theirs were full up Crews were

praised There were concerns expressed around communal bins for residents in

flats These were full up very quickly and perhaps used by other residents other than

those living in the flats to dispose of extra waste Storage was an issue for those

living in smaller homes and flats and the issue about getting older and putting out

heavy bins and boxes was expressed People felt they were happy to do their bit to

recycle but some families would struggle and need help and extra capacity

The telephone conversation with the Welshpool resident was based around the

difficulties faced by those living in a rural setting and the use of purple sacks and

communal collection points The gentleman had suggestions around better

communications and using the refuse crews to deliver regular flyers and information

to assist residents with their recycling

Conclusions

The purpose of the consultation was to seek and capture views from residents about

how easy they found it to recycle certain items of their household waste currently using the kerbside service (glass cardboard paper certain plastics and food)

how full up their wheeled bin was currently when due a fortnightly collection

what if any concerns they may have about a move to a three weekly refuse collection service

how the council might be able to mitigate for certain households who are more likely to produce more waste based on their personal circumstances (large families residents with incontinence waste to dispose of etc

The feedback received from the consultation will help the service

Understand what concerns households have regarding both the recycling and refuse collection service

Work to address said concerns wherever possible through targeted support and visits to householders who want some help or advice clear generic communications and information via the website posters letters and publicity

A note about market research and consultations

When conducting market research companies use a margin of error and confidence level to ensure that their results are robust and representative of the population they are seeking views from (the population of interest) A consultation however isnrsquot market research as people choose to respond and are not contacted using a sampling methodology People self-select so sometimes when conducting a consultation you only hear the views of the people who are either strongly in favour or strongly object to a proposal The silent majority may not have given a view However when we analyse any consultation results we do consider how robust they are in terms of the population of interest Powys has around 60000 households and a population of around 130000 Every household has the refuse collection and recycling service in one form or another so the population of interest is 60000 To get a robust and representative view of the population as a whole - using an market industry calculator ndash we needed over a thousand households to respond to the survey With 1781 householders responding minus the two Town and Community councils (1779) we can be 95 confident that the views given represent those of Powys households as a whole within a margin of error of 3 This means that as in question 3 where we ask people how easy they find it to recycle and 34 state ldquovery easyrdquo we can be sure that if we repeated the survey the results would be between the range of 31 and 37 When conducting consultation exercise Powys County Council works to the National Principles for Public Engagement in Wales httpwwwparticipationcymruorguknational-principles

which would allow you to dispose of your nappies and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste Would this help 147 respondents had stated that they were in the position of having two or more children in nappies currently 139 of them chose to answer this question 70 felt a free and additional nappy collection service would be a help

The same respondents were then asked a follow up question Q6a If there was a nappy collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks Five of the 139 respondents who answered Q6 chose not to answer this follow up question leaving 134 responses The results showed that 60 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage with their current bin and an extra nappy collection service 40 felt they would be able to manage with six householders also happy to consider swapping back from a 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 48 36

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

6 4

No 80 60

Total 134 100

Finally the same respondents (families with 2 or more children in nappies) were asked one more question

0

20

40

60

80

100

Yes No

70

30

Chart Title

Q6b If the nappy service isnrsquot deemed viable for Powys then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 6

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 42

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 24

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 47

Total 119

119 families answered this final question As was the case for the larger families the preference for those with a 180litre bin was clearly to move to a 240litre wheeled bin instead Those families who were already on the larger bin were more likely to want an extra 120litre bin if there were no nappy collection scheme on offer but 24 did say theyrsquod prefer a roll of purple sacks instead Q7 For households where someone has incontinence waste or similar eg incontinence pads or colostomy bags you may have either a 180litre (standard size) or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly wersquod like to be able to offer a free incontinence wastenappy collection scheme (frequency to be agreed but likely to be weekly or fortnightly) This would allow you to dispose of some of your waste and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste (This scheme would not include colostomy bags) Would this help 106 residents stated they had incontinence waste to dispose of However only 85 choose to answer this first specific question about the proposals around three weekly collections 56 were interested in a free service whilst 29 were not

The same respondents were then asked a similar question as those families with children in nappies

56

29

Interest in incontinence collection scheme

Yes No

Q7a If there was a collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks One more person choose to answer this question so 86 respondents gave a view The results showed that 50 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage but 50 did Looking at the 50 who felt confident 10 of these residents said they were happy to consider swapping back from their current 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 34 40

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

9 10

No 43 50

Total 86 100

Q7b If the service isnrsquot deemed viable then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household 81 out of the 86 respondents who had answered the previous question gave a view on what might work best for them Again there appears to be a preference by residents for an extra bin rather than purple sacks

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 28

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 27

Total 81

Q8 For households who opted for a 120litre bin there is an option to swap to a bigger 180litre bin or to stay as you are if you felt you didnrsquot have much non-recyclable waste to dispose of Which would be your preferred option 157 residents had identified themselves as having a 120litre bin which is the smallest wheeled bin available 144 answered this question 57 were happy to stay on the 120litre bin they had already compared to 43 who wanted to swap to a 180litre bin when the council moved to a three weekly collection

Answer Count Percentage

Stick with the 120litre bin 82

Swap to a 180 litre bin 62

Total 144

Q10 Having considered your household situation and the plans being put forward do you have any major concerns about a change to a three weekly rubbish collection service

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 1358 80

No 336 20

Total 1694 100

This question was asked of all respondents 1694 out of the 1781 respondents answered this question The vast majority (80) had some concerns about the move to a three weekly refuse collection service and these concerns related to a number of issues Residents were asked to give details Q10a The top five concerns were

potential smell of waste after three weeks

vermin

fly tipping

capacity issues re storage andor more boxes

communications and information re- recycling

Q10b What about moving to a monthly rubbish collection service Would

you have any objections if you could store your non-recyclable waste in a

big enough bin

Respondents were given the choice of four answers Two were objecting to a move to four weekly and two were supporting this 1683 responses were received for this question Just under a fifth (19) felt a move to a monthly collection service either now or after the three weekly service had been rolled out for a while would not cause them a problem However 81 did object

Answer Count Percentage

No I wouldnrsquot object It makes sense to go monthly and make the savings now rather than going 3 weekly and then monthly

173 10

No I wouldnrsquot object Irsquod be happy to go three weekly first and then move to a monthly collection over time

145 9

Yes I do object I think expecting households to wait three weeks for a collection is too long ndash savings or no savings Find them elsewhere

626 37

Yes I do object I think our recycling and rubbish collection service are the things that council tax payers can see for their money and going monthly isnrsquot acceptable

739 44

Total 1683 100

Q11 If you have any final comments or suggestions about recyclingrubbish

collections that yoursquod like to make please do so here

Over a thousand comments were received These comments were quite varied and

ranged from residents objecting per se to three weekly collections to some calls for

the council to get much tougher and fine people for not recycling their waste

There were comments that more communications information and advice was

needed to help residents understand what can and canrsquot be recycled and why we are

no longer taking the softer type plastic wrappings or bags This issue about

educating the public and helping them understand more about why certain decisions

are taken and what happens to the waste that goes to be recycled also came up in

the focus groups held in Presteigne in particular

There were some concerns about the potential smell of waste left for three weeks in

a wheeled bin ndash in particular things like pet waste nappies sanitary waste and dog

faeces which is generally put into wheeled bins There were also concerns about

flytipping

Some respondents called for the council to lobby the Welsh and Westminster

governmentrsquos about the cuts to funding and also to lobby and put pressure onto

manufacturers who produce a lot of unnecessary packaging

Other Responses

A further 20+ comments were received from residents via their local councillor from

a town and community council on behalf of their residents or from residents who

either emailed the council via the generic web site or a direct email address or who

rang to speak to an officer

These comments were all logged and analysed The majority resonated with the

views and concerns given by the wider sample and included comments on flytipping

health rats the impact on more urban towns confusion re a 3 weekly collection

cycle lack of garden waste collection storage and space issues operatives role in

keeping streets clean post a collection and comments regarding council tax and

value for money One resident suggested we consider electricity generation as in a

waste to energy plant and another request was made around better promotion and

communications regarding the whole reduce reuse and recycle ethos

Focus Groups

Some focus groups were also held in Presteige and Ystradgynlais with members of

the countyrsquos citizens panel to find out their views and concerns Presteigne

residents had been part of a Welsh Government project called Zero Waste a few

years ago and the majority had a 120 litre bin or purple sacks Residents in

Ystradgynlais were the first to receive the kerbside recycling service A focus group

for Welshpool was organised but only one person was able to attend so a telephone

interview was conducted instead with this resident The full findings will be included

in the final report but are summed up here

Presteigne focus group members were not overly concerned about moving to a three

weekly service but wanted to see better information advice and communications

around why we did and didnrsquot take certain materials and what residents can and

canrsquot recycle using the kerbside boxes and other outlets like the community recycling

sites and the household waste recycling centres They wanted Powys to promote

and make recycling as easy as possible They thought that the council should

assume people could cope with three weekly unless they stated otherwise and

thought residents should try the new service first and then be assessed if they

couldnrsquot manage with the bin they had They thought more could be done at

community recycling sites to allow residents to take other things there for recycling

Batteries and small electrical products were mentioned

Ystradgynlais focus group members felt it was easy to recycle overall but the boxes

were a bit cumbersome and some wanted more as theirs were full up Crews were

praised There were concerns expressed around communal bins for residents in

flats These were full up very quickly and perhaps used by other residents other than

those living in the flats to dispose of extra waste Storage was an issue for those

living in smaller homes and flats and the issue about getting older and putting out

heavy bins and boxes was expressed People felt they were happy to do their bit to

recycle but some families would struggle and need help and extra capacity

The telephone conversation with the Welshpool resident was based around the

difficulties faced by those living in a rural setting and the use of purple sacks and

communal collection points The gentleman had suggestions around better

communications and using the refuse crews to deliver regular flyers and information

to assist residents with their recycling

Conclusions

The purpose of the consultation was to seek and capture views from residents about

how easy they found it to recycle certain items of their household waste currently using the kerbside service (glass cardboard paper certain plastics and food)

how full up their wheeled bin was currently when due a fortnightly collection

what if any concerns they may have about a move to a three weekly refuse collection service

how the council might be able to mitigate for certain households who are more likely to produce more waste based on their personal circumstances (large families residents with incontinence waste to dispose of etc

The feedback received from the consultation will help the service

Understand what concerns households have regarding both the recycling and refuse collection service

Work to address said concerns wherever possible through targeted support and visits to householders who want some help or advice clear generic communications and information via the website posters letters and publicity

A note about market research and consultations

When conducting market research companies use a margin of error and confidence level to ensure that their results are robust and representative of the population they are seeking views from (the population of interest) A consultation however isnrsquot market research as people choose to respond and are not contacted using a sampling methodology People self-select so sometimes when conducting a consultation you only hear the views of the people who are either strongly in favour or strongly object to a proposal The silent majority may not have given a view However when we analyse any consultation results we do consider how robust they are in terms of the population of interest Powys has around 60000 households and a population of around 130000 Every household has the refuse collection and recycling service in one form or another so the population of interest is 60000 To get a robust and representative view of the population as a whole - using an market industry calculator ndash we needed over a thousand households to respond to the survey With 1781 householders responding minus the two Town and Community councils (1779) we can be 95 confident that the views given represent those of Powys households as a whole within a margin of error of 3 This means that as in question 3 where we ask people how easy they find it to recycle and 34 state ldquovery easyrdquo we can be sure that if we repeated the survey the results would be between the range of 31 and 37 When conducting consultation exercise Powys County Council works to the National Principles for Public Engagement in Wales httpwwwparticipationcymruorguknational-principles

Q6b If the nappy service isnrsquot deemed viable for Powys then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 6

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 42

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 24

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 47

Total 119

119 families answered this final question As was the case for the larger families the preference for those with a 180litre bin was clearly to move to a 240litre wheeled bin instead Those families who were already on the larger bin were more likely to want an extra 120litre bin if there were no nappy collection scheme on offer but 24 did say theyrsquod prefer a roll of purple sacks instead Q7 For households where someone has incontinence waste or similar eg incontinence pads or colostomy bags you may have either a 180litre (standard size) or a 240litre (larger size) wheeled bin When we go three weekly wersquod like to be able to offer a free incontinence wastenappy collection scheme (frequency to be agreed but likely to be weekly or fortnightly) This would allow you to dispose of some of your waste and free up space in your wheeled bin for the rest of your non-recyclable waste (This scheme would not include colostomy bags) Would this help 106 residents stated they had incontinence waste to dispose of However only 85 choose to answer this first specific question about the proposals around three weekly collections 56 were interested in a free service whilst 29 were not

The same respondents were then asked a similar question as those families with children in nappies

56

29

Interest in incontinence collection scheme

Yes No

Q7a If there was a collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks One more person choose to answer this question so 86 respondents gave a view The results showed that 50 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage but 50 did Looking at the 50 who felt confident 10 of these residents said they were happy to consider swapping back from their current 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 34 40

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

9 10

No 43 50

Total 86 100

Q7b If the service isnrsquot deemed viable then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household 81 out of the 86 respondents who had answered the previous question gave a view on what might work best for them Again there appears to be a preference by residents for an extra bin rather than purple sacks

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 28

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 27

Total 81

Q8 For households who opted for a 120litre bin there is an option to swap to a bigger 180litre bin or to stay as you are if you felt you didnrsquot have much non-recyclable waste to dispose of Which would be your preferred option 157 residents had identified themselves as having a 120litre bin which is the smallest wheeled bin available 144 answered this question 57 were happy to stay on the 120litre bin they had already compared to 43 who wanted to swap to a 180litre bin when the council moved to a three weekly collection

Answer Count Percentage

Stick with the 120litre bin 82

Swap to a 180 litre bin 62

Total 144

Q10 Having considered your household situation and the plans being put forward do you have any major concerns about a change to a three weekly rubbish collection service

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 1358 80

No 336 20

Total 1694 100

This question was asked of all respondents 1694 out of the 1781 respondents answered this question The vast majority (80) had some concerns about the move to a three weekly refuse collection service and these concerns related to a number of issues Residents were asked to give details Q10a The top five concerns were

potential smell of waste after three weeks

vermin

fly tipping

capacity issues re storage andor more boxes

communications and information re- recycling

Q10b What about moving to a monthly rubbish collection service Would

you have any objections if you could store your non-recyclable waste in a

big enough bin

Respondents were given the choice of four answers Two were objecting to a move to four weekly and two were supporting this 1683 responses were received for this question Just under a fifth (19) felt a move to a monthly collection service either now or after the three weekly service had been rolled out for a while would not cause them a problem However 81 did object

Answer Count Percentage

No I wouldnrsquot object It makes sense to go monthly and make the savings now rather than going 3 weekly and then monthly

173 10

No I wouldnrsquot object Irsquod be happy to go three weekly first and then move to a monthly collection over time

145 9

Yes I do object I think expecting households to wait three weeks for a collection is too long ndash savings or no savings Find them elsewhere

626 37

Yes I do object I think our recycling and rubbish collection service are the things that council tax payers can see for their money and going monthly isnrsquot acceptable

739 44

Total 1683 100

Q11 If you have any final comments or suggestions about recyclingrubbish

collections that yoursquod like to make please do so here

Over a thousand comments were received These comments were quite varied and

ranged from residents objecting per se to three weekly collections to some calls for

the council to get much tougher and fine people for not recycling their waste

There were comments that more communications information and advice was

needed to help residents understand what can and canrsquot be recycled and why we are

no longer taking the softer type plastic wrappings or bags This issue about

educating the public and helping them understand more about why certain decisions

are taken and what happens to the waste that goes to be recycled also came up in

the focus groups held in Presteigne in particular

There were some concerns about the potential smell of waste left for three weeks in

a wheeled bin ndash in particular things like pet waste nappies sanitary waste and dog

faeces which is generally put into wheeled bins There were also concerns about

flytipping

Some respondents called for the council to lobby the Welsh and Westminster

governmentrsquos about the cuts to funding and also to lobby and put pressure onto

manufacturers who produce a lot of unnecessary packaging

Other Responses

A further 20+ comments were received from residents via their local councillor from

a town and community council on behalf of their residents or from residents who

either emailed the council via the generic web site or a direct email address or who

rang to speak to an officer

These comments were all logged and analysed The majority resonated with the

views and concerns given by the wider sample and included comments on flytipping

health rats the impact on more urban towns confusion re a 3 weekly collection

cycle lack of garden waste collection storage and space issues operatives role in

keeping streets clean post a collection and comments regarding council tax and

value for money One resident suggested we consider electricity generation as in a

waste to energy plant and another request was made around better promotion and

communications regarding the whole reduce reuse and recycle ethos

Focus Groups

Some focus groups were also held in Presteige and Ystradgynlais with members of

the countyrsquos citizens panel to find out their views and concerns Presteigne

residents had been part of a Welsh Government project called Zero Waste a few

years ago and the majority had a 120 litre bin or purple sacks Residents in

Ystradgynlais were the first to receive the kerbside recycling service A focus group

for Welshpool was organised but only one person was able to attend so a telephone

interview was conducted instead with this resident The full findings will be included

in the final report but are summed up here

Presteigne focus group members were not overly concerned about moving to a three

weekly service but wanted to see better information advice and communications

around why we did and didnrsquot take certain materials and what residents can and

canrsquot recycle using the kerbside boxes and other outlets like the community recycling

sites and the household waste recycling centres They wanted Powys to promote

and make recycling as easy as possible They thought that the council should

assume people could cope with three weekly unless they stated otherwise and

thought residents should try the new service first and then be assessed if they

couldnrsquot manage with the bin they had They thought more could be done at

community recycling sites to allow residents to take other things there for recycling

Batteries and small electrical products were mentioned

Ystradgynlais focus group members felt it was easy to recycle overall but the boxes

were a bit cumbersome and some wanted more as theirs were full up Crews were

praised There were concerns expressed around communal bins for residents in

flats These were full up very quickly and perhaps used by other residents other than

those living in the flats to dispose of extra waste Storage was an issue for those

living in smaller homes and flats and the issue about getting older and putting out

heavy bins and boxes was expressed People felt they were happy to do their bit to

recycle but some families would struggle and need help and extra capacity

The telephone conversation with the Welshpool resident was based around the

difficulties faced by those living in a rural setting and the use of purple sacks and

communal collection points The gentleman had suggestions around better

communications and using the refuse crews to deliver regular flyers and information

to assist residents with their recycling

Conclusions

The purpose of the consultation was to seek and capture views from residents about

how easy they found it to recycle certain items of their household waste currently using the kerbside service (glass cardboard paper certain plastics and food)

how full up their wheeled bin was currently when due a fortnightly collection

what if any concerns they may have about a move to a three weekly refuse collection service

how the council might be able to mitigate for certain households who are more likely to produce more waste based on their personal circumstances (large families residents with incontinence waste to dispose of etc

The feedback received from the consultation will help the service

Understand what concerns households have regarding both the recycling and refuse collection service

Work to address said concerns wherever possible through targeted support and visits to householders who want some help or advice clear generic communications and information via the website posters letters and publicity

A note about market research and consultations

When conducting market research companies use a margin of error and confidence level to ensure that their results are robust and representative of the population they are seeking views from (the population of interest) A consultation however isnrsquot market research as people choose to respond and are not contacted using a sampling methodology People self-select so sometimes when conducting a consultation you only hear the views of the people who are either strongly in favour or strongly object to a proposal The silent majority may not have given a view However when we analyse any consultation results we do consider how robust they are in terms of the population of interest Powys has around 60000 households and a population of around 130000 Every household has the refuse collection and recycling service in one form or another so the population of interest is 60000 To get a robust and representative view of the population as a whole - using an market industry calculator ndash we needed over a thousand households to respond to the survey With 1781 householders responding minus the two Town and Community councils (1779) we can be 95 confident that the views given represent those of Powys households as a whole within a margin of error of 3 This means that as in question 3 where we ask people how easy they find it to recycle and 34 state ldquovery easyrdquo we can be sure that if we repeated the survey the results would be between the range of 31 and 37 When conducting consultation exercise Powys County Council works to the National Principles for Public Engagement in Wales httpwwwparticipationcymruorguknational-principles

Q7a If there was a collection service in place do you feel confident that you could manage with the wheeled bin you have for the rest of your non-recyclable waste every three weeks One more person choose to answer this question so 86 respondents gave a view The results showed that 50 were not convinced or confident that they would be able to manage but 50 did Looking at the 50 who felt confident 10 of these residents said they were happy to consider swapping back from their current 240litre bin to the standard 180litre bin

Answer Count Percentage

Yes that would be fine 34 40

Yes and swap back to 180litre bin

9 10

No 43 50

Total 86 100

Q7b If the service isnrsquot deemed viable then we are considering the following Which would be the best option for your household 81 out of the 86 respondents who had answered the previous question gave a view on what might work best for them Again there appears to be a preference by residents for an extra bin rather than purple sacks

Option Count

180litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

Swap from 180litre to 240litre bin 28

240litre now + roll of purple sacks 13

240litre bin now + 120litre bin 27

Total 81

Q8 For households who opted for a 120litre bin there is an option to swap to a bigger 180litre bin or to stay as you are if you felt you didnrsquot have much non-recyclable waste to dispose of Which would be your preferred option 157 residents had identified themselves as having a 120litre bin which is the smallest wheeled bin available 144 answered this question 57 were happy to stay on the 120litre bin they had already compared to 43 who wanted to swap to a 180litre bin when the council moved to a three weekly collection

Answer Count Percentage

Stick with the 120litre bin 82

Swap to a 180 litre bin 62

Total 144

Q10 Having considered your household situation and the plans being put forward do you have any major concerns about a change to a three weekly rubbish collection service

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 1358 80

No 336 20

Total 1694 100

This question was asked of all respondents 1694 out of the 1781 respondents answered this question The vast majority (80) had some concerns about the move to a three weekly refuse collection service and these concerns related to a number of issues Residents were asked to give details Q10a The top five concerns were

potential smell of waste after three weeks

vermin

fly tipping

capacity issues re storage andor more boxes

communications and information re- recycling

Q10b What about moving to a monthly rubbish collection service Would

you have any objections if you could store your non-recyclable waste in a

big enough bin

Respondents were given the choice of four answers Two were objecting to a move to four weekly and two were supporting this 1683 responses were received for this question Just under a fifth (19) felt a move to a monthly collection service either now or after the three weekly service had been rolled out for a while would not cause them a problem However 81 did object

Answer Count Percentage

No I wouldnrsquot object It makes sense to go monthly and make the savings now rather than going 3 weekly and then monthly

173 10

No I wouldnrsquot object Irsquod be happy to go three weekly first and then move to a monthly collection over time

145 9

Yes I do object I think expecting households to wait three weeks for a collection is too long ndash savings or no savings Find them elsewhere

626 37

Yes I do object I think our recycling and rubbish collection service are the things that council tax payers can see for their money and going monthly isnrsquot acceptable

739 44

Total 1683 100

Q11 If you have any final comments or suggestions about recyclingrubbish

collections that yoursquod like to make please do so here

Over a thousand comments were received These comments were quite varied and

ranged from residents objecting per se to three weekly collections to some calls for

the council to get much tougher and fine people for not recycling their waste

There were comments that more communications information and advice was

needed to help residents understand what can and canrsquot be recycled and why we are

no longer taking the softer type plastic wrappings or bags This issue about

educating the public and helping them understand more about why certain decisions

are taken and what happens to the waste that goes to be recycled also came up in

the focus groups held in Presteigne in particular

There were some concerns about the potential smell of waste left for three weeks in

a wheeled bin ndash in particular things like pet waste nappies sanitary waste and dog

faeces which is generally put into wheeled bins There were also concerns about

flytipping

Some respondents called for the council to lobby the Welsh and Westminster

governmentrsquos about the cuts to funding and also to lobby and put pressure onto

manufacturers who produce a lot of unnecessary packaging

Other Responses

A further 20+ comments were received from residents via their local councillor from

a town and community council on behalf of their residents or from residents who

either emailed the council via the generic web site or a direct email address or who

rang to speak to an officer

These comments were all logged and analysed The majority resonated with the

views and concerns given by the wider sample and included comments on flytipping

health rats the impact on more urban towns confusion re a 3 weekly collection

cycle lack of garden waste collection storage and space issues operatives role in

keeping streets clean post a collection and comments regarding council tax and

value for money One resident suggested we consider electricity generation as in a

waste to energy plant and another request was made around better promotion and

communications regarding the whole reduce reuse and recycle ethos

Focus Groups

Some focus groups were also held in Presteige and Ystradgynlais with members of

the countyrsquos citizens panel to find out their views and concerns Presteigne

residents had been part of a Welsh Government project called Zero Waste a few

years ago and the majority had a 120 litre bin or purple sacks Residents in

Ystradgynlais were the first to receive the kerbside recycling service A focus group

for Welshpool was organised but only one person was able to attend so a telephone

interview was conducted instead with this resident The full findings will be included

in the final report but are summed up here

Presteigne focus group members were not overly concerned about moving to a three

weekly service but wanted to see better information advice and communications

around why we did and didnrsquot take certain materials and what residents can and

canrsquot recycle using the kerbside boxes and other outlets like the community recycling

sites and the household waste recycling centres They wanted Powys to promote

and make recycling as easy as possible They thought that the council should

assume people could cope with three weekly unless they stated otherwise and

thought residents should try the new service first and then be assessed if they

couldnrsquot manage with the bin they had They thought more could be done at

community recycling sites to allow residents to take other things there for recycling

Batteries and small electrical products were mentioned

Ystradgynlais focus group members felt it was easy to recycle overall but the boxes

were a bit cumbersome and some wanted more as theirs were full up Crews were

praised There were concerns expressed around communal bins for residents in

flats These were full up very quickly and perhaps used by other residents other than

those living in the flats to dispose of extra waste Storage was an issue for those

living in smaller homes and flats and the issue about getting older and putting out

heavy bins and boxes was expressed People felt they were happy to do their bit to

recycle but some families would struggle and need help and extra capacity

The telephone conversation with the Welshpool resident was based around the

difficulties faced by those living in a rural setting and the use of purple sacks and

communal collection points The gentleman had suggestions around better

communications and using the refuse crews to deliver regular flyers and information

to assist residents with their recycling

Conclusions

The purpose of the consultation was to seek and capture views from residents about

how easy they found it to recycle certain items of their household waste currently using the kerbside service (glass cardboard paper certain plastics and food)

how full up their wheeled bin was currently when due a fortnightly collection

what if any concerns they may have about a move to a three weekly refuse collection service

how the council might be able to mitigate for certain households who are more likely to produce more waste based on their personal circumstances (large families residents with incontinence waste to dispose of etc

The feedback received from the consultation will help the service

Understand what concerns households have regarding both the recycling and refuse collection service

Work to address said concerns wherever possible through targeted support and visits to householders who want some help or advice clear generic communications and information via the website posters letters and publicity

A note about market research and consultations

When conducting market research companies use a margin of error and confidence level to ensure that their results are robust and representative of the population they are seeking views from (the population of interest) A consultation however isnrsquot market research as people choose to respond and are not contacted using a sampling methodology People self-select so sometimes when conducting a consultation you only hear the views of the people who are either strongly in favour or strongly object to a proposal The silent majority may not have given a view However when we analyse any consultation results we do consider how robust they are in terms of the population of interest Powys has around 60000 households and a population of around 130000 Every household has the refuse collection and recycling service in one form or another so the population of interest is 60000 To get a robust and representative view of the population as a whole - using an market industry calculator ndash we needed over a thousand households to respond to the survey With 1781 householders responding minus the two Town and Community councils (1779) we can be 95 confident that the views given represent those of Powys households as a whole within a margin of error of 3 This means that as in question 3 where we ask people how easy they find it to recycle and 34 state ldquovery easyrdquo we can be sure that if we repeated the survey the results would be between the range of 31 and 37 When conducting consultation exercise Powys County Council works to the National Principles for Public Engagement in Wales httpwwwparticipationcymruorguknational-principles

Answer Count Percentage

Stick with the 120litre bin 82

Swap to a 180 litre bin 62

Total 144

Q10 Having considered your household situation and the plans being put forward do you have any major concerns about a change to a three weekly rubbish collection service

Answer Count Percentage

Yes 1358 80

No 336 20

Total 1694 100

This question was asked of all respondents 1694 out of the 1781 respondents answered this question The vast majority (80) had some concerns about the move to a three weekly refuse collection service and these concerns related to a number of issues Residents were asked to give details Q10a The top five concerns were

potential smell of waste after three weeks

vermin

fly tipping

capacity issues re storage andor more boxes

communications and information re- recycling

Q10b What about moving to a monthly rubbish collection service Would

you have any objections if you could store your non-recyclable waste in a

big enough bin

Respondents were given the choice of four answers Two were objecting to a move to four weekly and two were supporting this 1683 responses were received for this question Just under a fifth (19) felt a move to a monthly collection service either now or after the three weekly service had been rolled out for a while would not cause them a problem However 81 did object

Answer Count Percentage

No I wouldnrsquot object It makes sense to go monthly and make the savings now rather than going 3 weekly and then monthly

173 10

No I wouldnrsquot object Irsquod be happy to go three weekly first and then move to a monthly collection over time

145 9

Yes I do object I think expecting households to wait three weeks for a collection is too long ndash savings or no savings Find them elsewhere

626 37

Yes I do object I think our recycling and rubbish collection service are the things that council tax payers can see for their money and going monthly isnrsquot acceptable

739 44

Total 1683 100

Q11 If you have any final comments or suggestions about recyclingrubbish

collections that yoursquod like to make please do so here

Over a thousand comments were received These comments were quite varied and

ranged from residents objecting per se to three weekly collections to some calls for

the council to get much tougher and fine people for not recycling their waste

There were comments that more communications information and advice was

needed to help residents understand what can and canrsquot be recycled and why we are

no longer taking the softer type plastic wrappings or bags This issue about

educating the public and helping them understand more about why certain decisions

are taken and what happens to the waste that goes to be recycled also came up in

the focus groups held in Presteigne in particular

There were some concerns about the potential smell of waste left for three weeks in

a wheeled bin ndash in particular things like pet waste nappies sanitary waste and dog

faeces which is generally put into wheeled bins There were also concerns about

flytipping

Some respondents called for the council to lobby the Welsh and Westminster

governmentrsquos about the cuts to funding and also to lobby and put pressure onto

manufacturers who produce a lot of unnecessary packaging

Other Responses

A further 20+ comments were received from residents via their local councillor from

a town and community council on behalf of their residents or from residents who

either emailed the council via the generic web site or a direct email address or who

rang to speak to an officer

These comments were all logged and analysed The majority resonated with the

views and concerns given by the wider sample and included comments on flytipping

health rats the impact on more urban towns confusion re a 3 weekly collection

cycle lack of garden waste collection storage and space issues operatives role in

keeping streets clean post a collection and comments regarding council tax and

value for money One resident suggested we consider electricity generation as in a

waste to energy plant and another request was made around better promotion and

communications regarding the whole reduce reuse and recycle ethos

Focus Groups

Some focus groups were also held in Presteige and Ystradgynlais with members of

the countyrsquos citizens panel to find out their views and concerns Presteigne

residents had been part of a Welsh Government project called Zero Waste a few

years ago and the majority had a 120 litre bin or purple sacks Residents in

Ystradgynlais were the first to receive the kerbside recycling service A focus group

for Welshpool was organised but only one person was able to attend so a telephone

interview was conducted instead with this resident The full findings will be included

in the final report but are summed up here

Presteigne focus group members were not overly concerned about moving to a three

weekly service but wanted to see better information advice and communications

around why we did and didnrsquot take certain materials and what residents can and

canrsquot recycle using the kerbside boxes and other outlets like the community recycling

sites and the household waste recycling centres They wanted Powys to promote

and make recycling as easy as possible They thought that the council should

assume people could cope with three weekly unless they stated otherwise and

thought residents should try the new service first and then be assessed if they

couldnrsquot manage with the bin they had They thought more could be done at

community recycling sites to allow residents to take other things there for recycling

Batteries and small electrical products were mentioned

Ystradgynlais focus group members felt it was easy to recycle overall but the boxes

were a bit cumbersome and some wanted more as theirs were full up Crews were

praised There were concerns expressed around communal bins for residents in

flats These were full up very quickly and perhaps used by other residents other than

those living in the flats to dispose of extra waste Storage was an issue for those

living in smaller homes and flats and the issue about getting older and putting out

heavy bins and boxes was expressed People felt they were happy to do their bit to

recycle but some families would struggle and need help and extra capacity

The telephone conversation with the Welshpool resident was based around the

difficulties faced by those living in a rural setting and the use of purple sacks and

communal collection points The gentleman had suggestions around better

communications and using the refuse crews to deliver regular flyers and information

to assist residents with their recycling

Conclusions

The purpose of the consultation was to seek and capture views from residents about

how easy they found it to recycle certain items of their household waste currently using the kerbside service (glass cardboard paper certain plastics and food)

how full up their wheeled bin was currently when due a fortnightly collection

what if any concerns they may have about a move to a three weekly refuse collection service

how the council might be able to mitigate for certain households who are more likely to produce more waste based on their personal circumstances (large families residents with incontinence waste to dispose of etc

The feedback received from the consultation will help the service

Understand what concerns households have regarding both the recycling and refuse collection service

Work to address said concerns wherever possible through targeted support and visits to householders who want some help or advice clear generic communications and information via the website posters letters and publicity

A note about market research and consultations

When conducting market research companies use a margin of error and confidence level to ensure that their results are robust and representative of the population they are seeking views from (the population of interest) A consultation however isnrsquot market research as people choose to respond and are not contacted using a sampling methodology People self-select so sometimes when conducting a consultation you only hear the views of the people who are either strongly in favour or strongly object to a proposal The silent majority may not have given a view However when we analyse any consultation results we do consider how robust they are in terms of the population of interest Powys has around 60000 households and a population of around 130000 Every household has the refuse collection and recycling service in one form or another so the population of interest is 60000 To get a robust and representative view of the population as a whole - using an market industry calculator ndash we needed over a thousand households to respond to the survey With 1781 householders responding minus the two Town and Community councils (1779) we can be 95 confident that the views given represent those of Powys households as a whole within a margin of error of 3 This means that as in question 3 where we ask people how easy they find it to recycle and 34 state ldquovery easyrdquo we can be sure that if we repeated the survey the results would be between the range of 31 and 37 When conducting consultation exercise Powys County Council works to the National Principles for Public Engagement in Wales httpwwwparticipationcymruorguknational-principles

Yes I do object I think expecting households to wait three weeks for a collection is too long ndash savings or no savings Find them elsewhere

626 37

Yes I do object I think our recycling and rubbish collection service are the things that council tax payers can see for their money and going monthly isnrsquot acceptable

739 44

Total 1683 100

Q11 If you have any final comments or suggestions about recyclingrubbish

collections that yoursquod like to make please do so here

Over a thousand comments were received These comments were quite varied and

ranged from residents objecting per se to three weekly collections to some calls for

the council to get much tougher and fine people for not recycling their waste

There were comments that more communications information and advice was

needed to help residents understand what can and canrsquot be recycled and why we are

no longer taking the softer type plastic wrappings or bags This issue about

educating the public and helping them understand more about why certain decisions

are taken and what happens to the waste that goes to be recycled also came up in

the focus groups held in Presteigne in particular

There were some concerns about the potential smell of waste left for three weeks in

a wheeled bin ndash in particular things like pet waste nappies sanitary waste and dog

faeces which is generally put into wheeled bins There were also concerns about

flytipping

Some respondents called for the council to lobby the Welsh and Westminster

governmentrsquos about the cuts to funding and also to lobby and put pressure onto

manufacturers who produce a lot of unnecessary packaging

Other Responses

A further 20+ comments were received from residents via their local councillor from

a town and community council on behalf of their residents or from residents who

either emailed the council via the generic web site or a direct email address or who

rang to speak to an officer

These comments were all logged and analysed The majority resonated with the

views and concerns given by the wider sample and included comments on flytipping

health rats the impact on more urban towns confusion re a 3 weekly collection

cycle lack of garden waste collection storage and space issues operatives role in

keeping streets clean post a collection and comments regarding council tax and

value for money One resident suggested we consider electricity generation as in a

waste to energy plant and another request was made around better promotion and

communications regarding the whole reduce reuse and recycle ethos

Focus Groups

Some focus groups were also held in Presteige and Ystradgynlais with members of

the countyrsquos citizens panel to find out their views and concerns Presteigne

residents had been part of a Welsh Government project called Zero Waste a few

years ago and the majority had a 120 litre bin or purple sacks Residents in

Ystradgynlais were the first to receive the kerbside recycling service A focus group

for Welshpool was organised but only one person was able to attend so a telephone

interview was conducted instead with this resident The full findings will be included

in the final report but are summed up here

Presteigne focus group members were not overly concerned about moving to a three

weekly service but wanted to see better information advice and communications

around why we did and didnrsquot take certain materials and what residents can and

canrsquot recycle using the kerbside boxes and other outlets like the community recycling

sites and the household waste recycling centres They wanted Powys to promote

and make recycling as easy as possible They thought that the council should

assume people could cope with three weekly unless they stated otherwise and

thought residents should try the new service first and then be assessed if they

couldnrsquot manage with the bin they had They thought more could be done at

community recycling sites to allow residents to take other things there for recycling

Batteries and small electrical products were mentioned

Ystradgynlais focus group members felt it was easy to recycle overall but the boxes

were a bit cumbersome and some wanted more as theirs were full up Crews were

praised There were concerns expressed around communal bins for residents in

flats These were full up very quickly and perhaps used by other residents other than

those living in the flats to dispose of extra waste Storage was an issue for those

living in smaller homes and flats and the issue about getting older and putting out

heavy bins and boxes was expressed People felt they were happy to do their bit to

recycle but some families would struggle and need help and extra capacity

The telephone conversation with the Welshpool resident was based around the

difficulties faced by those living in a rural setting and the use of purple sacks and

communal collection points The gentleman had suggestions around better

communications and using the refuse crews to deliver regular flyers and information

to assist residents with their recycling

Conclusions

The purpose of the consultation was to seek and capture views from residents about

how easy they found it to recycle certain items of their household waste currently using the kerbside service (glass cardboard paper certain plastics and food)

how full up their wheeled bin was currently when due a fortnightly collection

what if any concerns they may have about a move to a three weekly refuse collection service

how the council might be able to mitigate for certain households who are more likely to produce more waste based on their personal circumstances (large families residents with incontinence waste to dispose of etc

The feedback received from the consultation will help the service

Understand what concerns households have regarding both the recycling and refuse collection service

Work to address said concerns wherever possible through targeted support and visits to householders who want some help or advice clear generic communications and information via the website posters letters and publicity

A note about market research and consultations

When conducting market research companies use a margin of error and confidence level to ensure that their results are robust and representative of the population they are seeking views from (the population of interest) A consultation however isnrsquot market research as people choose to respond and are not contacted using a sampling methodology People self-select so sometimes when conducting a consultation you only hear the views of the people who are either strongly in favour or strongly object to a proposal The silent majority may not have given a view However when we analyse any consultation results we do consider how robust they are in terms of the population of interest Powys has around 60000 households and a population of around 130000 Every household has the refuse collection and recycling service in one form or another so the population of interest is 60000 To get a robust and representative view of the population as a whole - using an market industry calculator ndash we needed over a thousand households to respond to the survey With 1781 householders responding minus the two Town and Community councils (1779) we can be 95 confident that the views given represent those of Powys households as a whole within a margin of error of 3 This means that as in question 3 where we ask people how easy they find it to recycle and 34 state ldquovery easyrdquo we can be sure that if we repeated the survey the results would be between the range of 31 and 37 When conducting consultation exercise Powys County Council works to the National Principles for Public Engagement in Wales httpwwwparticipationcymruorguknational-principles

Focus Groups

Some focus groups were also held in Presteige and Ystradgynlais with members of

the countyrsquos citizens panel to find out their views and concerns Presteigne

residents had been part of a Welsh Government project called Zero Waste a few

years ago and the majority had a 120 litre bin or purple sacks Residents in

Ystradgynlais were the first to receive the kerbside recycling service A focus group

for Welshpool was organised but only one person was able to attend so a telephone

interview was conducted instead with this resident The full findings will be included

in the final report but are summed up here

Presteigne focus group members were not overly concerned about moving to a three

weekly service but wanted to see better information advice and communications

around why we did and didnrsquot take certain materials and what residents can and

canrsquot recycle using the kerbside boxes and other outlets like the community recycling

sites and the household waste recycling centres They wanted Powys to promote

and make recycling as easy as possible They thought that the council should

assume people could cope with three weekly unless they stated otherwise and

thought residents should try the new service first and then be assessed if they

couldnrsquot manage with the bin they had They thought more could be done at

community recycling sites to allow residents to take other things there for recycling

Batteries and small electrical products were mentioned

Ystradgynlais focus group members felt it was easy to recycle overall but the boxes

were a bit cumbersome and some wanted more as theirs were full up Crews were

praised There were concerns expressed around communal bins for residents in

flats These were full up very quickly and perhaps used by other residents other than

those living in the flats to dispose of extra waste Storage was an issue for those

living in smaller homes and flats and the issue about getting older and putting out

heavy bins and boxes was expressed People felt they were happy to do their bit to

recycle but some families would struggle and need help and extra capacity

The telephone conversation with the Welshpool resident was based around the

difficulties faced by those living in a rural setting and the use of purple sacks and

communal collection points The gentleman had suggestions around better

communications and using the refuse crews to deliver regular flyers and information

to assist residents with their recycling

Conclusions

The purpose of the consultation was to seek and capture views from residents about

how easy they found it to recycle certain items of their household waste currently using the kerbside service (glass cardboard paper certain plastics and food)

how full up their wheeled bin was currently when due a fortnightly collection

what if any concerns they may have about a move to a three weekly refuse collection service

how the council might be able to mitigate for certain households who are more likely to produce more waste based on their personal circumstances (large families residents with incontinence waste to dispose of etc

The feedback received from the consultation will help the service

Understand what concerns households have regarding both the recycling and refuse collection service

Work to address said concerns wherever possible through targeted support and visits to householders who want some help or advice clear generic communications and information via the website posters letters and publicity

A note about market research and consultations

When conducting market research companies use a margin of error and confidence level to ensure that their results are robust and representative of the population they are seeking views from (the population of interest) A consultation however isnrsquot market research as people choose to respond and are not contacted using a sampling methodology People self-select so sometimes when conducting a consultation you only hear the views of the people who are either strongly in favour or strongly object to a proposal The silent majority may not have given a view However when we analyse any consultation results we do consider how robust they are in terms of the population of interest Powys has around 60000 households and a population of around 130000 Every household has the refuse collection and recycling service in one form or another so the population of interest is 60000 To get a robust and representative view of the population as a whole - using an market industry calculator ndash we needed over a thousand households to respond to the survey With 1781 householders responding minus the two Town and Community councils (1779) we can be 95 confident that the views given represent those of Powys households as a whole within a margin of error of 3 This means that as in question 3 where we ask people how easy they find it to recycle and 34 state ldquovery easyrdquo we can be sure that if we repeated the survey the results would be between the range of 31 and 37 When conducting consultation exercise Powys County Council works to the National Principles for Public Engagement in Wales httpwwwparticipationcymruorguknational-principles

how the council might be able to mitigate for certain households who are more likely to produce more waste based on their personal circumstances (large families residents with incontinence waste to dispose of etc

The feedback received from the consultation will help the service

Understand what concerns households have regarding both the recycling and refuse collection service

Work to address said concerns wherever possible through targeted support and visits to householders who want some help or advice clear generic communications and information via the website posters letters and publicity

A note about market research and consultations

When conducting market research companies use a margin of error and confidence level to ensure that their results are robust and representative of the population they are seeking views from (the population of interest) A consultation however isnrsquot market research as people choose to respond and are not contacted using a sampling methodology People self-select so sometimes when conducting a consultation you only hear the views of the people who are either strongly in favour or strongly object to a proposal The silent majority may not have given a view However when we analyse any consultation results we do consider how robust they are in terms of the population of interest Powys has around 60000 households and a population of around 130000 Every household has the refuse collection and recycling service in one form or another so the population of interest is 60000 To get a robust and representative view of the population as a whole - using an market industry calculator ndash we needed over a thousand households to respond to the survey With 1781 householders responding minus the two Town and Community councils (1779) we can be 95 confident that the views given represent those of Powys households as a whole within a margin of error of 3 This means that as in question 3 where we ask people how easy they find it to recycle and 34 state ldquovery easyrdquo we can be sure that if we repeated the survey the results would be between the range of 31 and 37 When conducting consultation exercise Powys County Council works to the National Principles for Public Engagement in Wales httpwwwparticipationcymruorguknational-principles