Members considered the report of the Lead Director which provided analysis and commentary on the standards of service performance achieved through the Joint Waste Contract for the period June to November 2020.

The Key Performance Indicators (KPI) had been assessed and clarified during 2020.  Throughout 2020, the Council had considered Biffa’s KPI performance against their own monthly council data (number of customer complaints, number of waste related customer service calls etc.) and it was concluded that the analysis conducted by Biffa was accurate.

An update position of each individual Partner’s local service preparations was provided as follows:

Hastings Borough Council: Despite a spike of missed collections in September all key performance indicators had been achieved regarding collection services.  Good communication including enhancements to Biffa’s management processes had driven improvement which resulted in much lower missed collection rates in October and November.  All other elements of the collection contract were operating as expected.

Rother District Council: As a result of Government restrictions, from late March, both collection and street cleansing services were impacted.  Bulky and garden waste collections were suspended and reinstated on 4 May 2020.  During the first lockdown period, collection services and bring site standards improved.  However, volumes of recycling and clothing waste augmented at bring sites, despite social media messages and notices which increased the amount of fly-tipping.  Street cleansing continued as scheduled across the district.  Since the easing of the first lockdown normal operations had resumed.  Garden waste rounds experienced high volumes throughout the summer-autumn period and ‘bring sites’ struggled with the volume of recycling (packaging internet shopping).  The volumes of litter had increased as visitors returned to the District and restaurants provided take-away food.  During the summer, missed bin collections increased at 259 per 100,000, in November this reduced to 39 per 100,000, a significant improvement.  A significant issue was the increased levels of contamination in recycling bins and particularly ‘bring sites’ (Ravenside); investigation and monitoring was ongoing.  Since September, the Council had actively promoted garden waste to achieve and exceed the target of 20,000 subscribers.  Street cleansing had remained acceptable and litter, detritus and dog fouling services had achieved or exceeded contractual targets.

Wealden District Council: Collection and assisted collection performance continued to improve, however bring site collections in the north of the District required improvement.  Progress had improved regarding container deliveries and street cleansing.  Fly-tip clearance remained good despite challenges with increased incidents at local recycling bring sites.  Bulky and clinical waste collection performance remained consistent.

Despite contingency measures implemented by Biffa, general concern was expressed that further service disruption could be experienced in 2021 as a result of another national COVID-19 lockdown.

The Joint Waste Partnership (JWP) Manager advised that during 2020 and safety requirements imposed by COVID-19 pandemic, Biffa had successfully introduced the administrative and management processes that allowed resources to be deployed to best effect.  She also advised that East Sussex County Council and Viridor had undertaken a detailed analysis of material collected at ‘bring sites’ across the Partnership, which would allow each authority to implement local actions to deal with the issue.  It was also noted that Rother and Wealden District Councils had approved the transfer of the Administering Authority role to Wealden District Council from 1 April 2021.  Hastings Borough Council would be considering this in March 2021; no issues were anticipated.  An officer group had been established to manage the transfer.

The JWP Risk Register was maintained as a current document by the JWP Manager and was available to Members on request. The Joint Waste and Recycling Committee noted that three inter-related “amber” risks were actively being managed, namely COVID-19 related staff absence (7-14 days); extensive use of agency staff by Biffa; and major national disaster impacts one or more council areas e.g. pandemic effects council and contractor personnel and procedures

All risks would be monitored, and service priorities managed appropriately should service suspension be implemented.

RESOLVED: That the report be noted.