SHDC are extremely disappointed that our much heralded new recycling service is failing for some of you.

SHDC have made it absolutely clear to FCC Environment (UK) Limited, who are contracted to deliver the service, that performance is in some cases extremely poor and far below the standards we expect for our residents. FCC understand that there is an urgent need to improve their delivery of the service in some areas.

According to the PDSA, 24% of adults in the UK now own a dog – that’s over 10 million dogs and a lot of licks and love. However, there’s also a murkier side to the rise in dog-ownership in the South Hams. Unfortunately, the demand for dogs has driven up the price of puppies. Where there is money to be made, there are also, sadly, people who want to make more cash with no concern for animal welfare. Luckily, there is something you can do to make sure you are not accidentally funding the cruel puppy trade. South Hams District Council explains how licensing helps to protect the health and welfare of dogs and can give you confidence you’re buying a happy, healthy puppy.

DEVON COUNTY COUNCIL hereby give NOTICE that: On SUNDAY 20 JUNE 2021 for a maximum of 5 days Anticipated Finish SUNDAY 20 JUNE 2021, between the hours of 08:30 and 16:00 No person shall cause or permit any vehicle to proceed or wait on the sections of Affected Roads.

Please find below a service update on the current situation with South Hams' waste and recycling service from FCC Environment.

On 1st April 2019, FCC Environment began providing all waste, recycling collection and street and toilet cleaning services on behalf of South Hams District Council extending the company's existing contract with West Devon Borough Council to deliver a range of benefits to residents in both communities.

The waste and recycling service in West Devon, which mirrors the system rolled out in South Hams, has been successfully operating for over 10 years and residents have responded well. The new recycling vehicles now in use in South Hams have been in use in West Devon since March 2018.

The new recycling system which is currently being introduced in South Hams is considered 'best in class' by many other local authorities in England, has been carefully designed to maximise the amount of materials collected for recycling. The system also delivers improved quality recyclate which means the materials will go on to be recycled into new products.

Behind the scenes this system has been far from easy to implement in South Hams and FCC acknowledge that there have been service issues for some residents for which we apologise. These teething problems have resulted in some residents experiencing missed collections and we are truly sorry for any inconvenience and difficulties this has caused and continues to cause as we work with the council to rectify.

It should also be noted that the system was designed on the basis of recycling vehicles filling up once a day and being emptied at the end of the working day but due to the home working implications of lock downs through 2020-21 and residents saving recycling for the new system to launch, the vehicles can fill up, up to 2 to 3 times a day, so they need to travel back to the depot and unload each time but we are making our way through the implications of such increased volumes.

We are working hard to collect from residents that have been missed and to collect from the harder to reach properties on our rounds and we are getting there but we would ask residents, particularly those who have had repeated missed collections, to bear with us at this time.

We have been questioned about the vehicles being too large for some areas; the vehicles selected to deliver this service are state of the art recycling vehicles and they are sized to maximise the collection of recycling across the District. We do ask residents to follow council advice to place their recycling bins and boxes in the right places for collection. We appreciate for some that this may mean changes to the way their recycling has been collected previously but we ask for your support on this.

We are asking residents to bear with us in the coming weeks while these multi-faceted issues with this complex recycling scheme are ironed out and we remain confident that, once these hurdles have been overcome, that the service we have been contracted to deliver across South Hams and West Devon will deliver all of the benefits promised at the outset.

FCC Environment

Issued 28 May 2021