Recycling can be confusing. Each local authority area has different systems and there have been recent changes to the type and frequency of collections in many areas. 

Our housing staff are working hard in partnership with residents and local authority waste officers. They are working to explain to residents what can and can’t be recycled in their specific areas, what bins or bags to use and when to put them out. 

Here are some of the things we’re doing: 

• We organise community clean up days, working in partnership with organisations such as Keep Wales Tidy and local authorities, to help keep our communities litter free. 

• When we’re planning to build new homes, we’ve started bringing our development teams and local council waste departments together to plan bin stores that meet the needs of that area. 

• We can make practical changes to bin stores if necessary. For example, in some areas such as Flintshire, we’ve worked with the council’s waste departments to replace communal bins with individual, lockable bin stores to identify individual problem areas.  

• Where we identify individual residents regularly causing problems, we will speak with them at first. If the issues continue, we can work with the local authority to serve notice on them, which could lead to a warning or fine.  

• In some cases, we can install CCTV cameras in bin stores to capture evidence of repeat offending. If we identify an offence, we will pass the evidence onto the relevant authority to prosecute.  

• In cases of fly-tipping, if it’s on public land, we’ll report it to the local authority to investigate. If it’s on our land, we have to employ specialist waste companies to clear the area. 

• We work with local authority waste enforcement officers who prosecute offenders if they can find evidence. They can issue fixed penalty notices of £300 for smaller scale littering and will prosecute large-scale fly-tipping through the courts, which can lead to prison sentences or large fines.