RESIDENTS affected by changes to rubbish and recycling collections over the festive period have been informed.

As in previous years, wheelie bins have been tagged with details about alternative arrangements for collections which fall on Christmas Day, Thursday 25th December and Boxing Day Friday 26th December, when there will be no waste and recycling services in operation. Leaflets have also been delivered to blue bag households, advising of any changes. The vast majority of residents should be unaffected.

In areas where the wheelie bin and recycle box collection falls on Christmas Day, bins will be emptied on either Monday 29th or Tuesday 30th December and recycle boxes will be emptied on Sunday 28th or Monday 29th December.

For collections which would normally fall on Boxing Day, wheelie bin collections will be made on either Tuesday 30th or Wednesday 31st December and recycle boxes will be emptied on either Monday 29th or Tuesday 30th December.

Residents are asked to make sure wheelie bins are ready for collection at the normal time of 6.30am (7.30am for recycle boxes).

Blue rubbish bag collections will resume on New Year’s Day, Thursday 1st or Friday 2nd January, depending on the usual collection day. Residents are asked to leave out their recycle boxes from Sunday 28th until Tuesday 30th December.

Households not scheduled for a recycling collection during the Christmas week, will have their collection as normal during the first week of the New Year.

There will be no fortnightly plastics collection on Christmas Day and Boxing Day. Residents are requested to store recyclable plastic until the next scheduled collection after the New Year (either Thursday 8th January or Friday 9th January, depending on the usual collection day).

Green waste wheelie bins have also been tagged, reminding service users that there will be no green waste collections from Thursday 25th December until Wednesday, 7th January. Normal service will resume from Thursday, 8th January on resident’s scheduled collection day.

All residents are also invited to leave out their real Christmas trees to be recycled. Trees can be left out, without decorations, from Thursday 8th January and will be collected on the normal collection day by Friday 23rd January. In case any trees are missed on the scheduled day, residents are asked to keep them left out for collection.

The Household Waste Recycling Centre (HWRC), which is open daily from 8am until 4.30pm, will be closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.

Coun Brian Ford, Cabinet Member for Streetsmart, said: “Every year the council makes more than 7million individual waste and recycling collections, which is a staggering figure and takes a considerable amount of work. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the dedicated crews which carry out these vital services day in day out, whatever the weather.

"I would also like to express my gratitude to all residents, who take great pride in helping them do their job by carefully sorting their recycling and putting their bins out on time – this support is invaluable and makes a massive difference.

"I hope people will continue their recycling efforts over the festive period and wish everyone a merry Christmas and happy New Year.”

Information about Christmas waste and recycling collections is also available online at www.swindonnews.org.uk/xmaswaste