MORE than 5,600 households have signed up for the council’s new green waste collection service, which starts from the end of this month.

The final collection round under the current four-bag limit service is now under way and the optional, paid-for service will begin on Monday, March 31.

Annual subscription costs £40, including a fortnightly collection, except for two weeks at Christmas, and a wheelie bin or supply of bags for properties the council considers unsuitable for a bin.

To register, go online at www.swindon.gov.uk/greenwaste or call 01793 445501. Residents are asked not to put out unregistered bags of green waste after their final collection date, as they will no longer be picked up.

Alternatively people can compost at home and the council has teamed up with SEQOL Enterprise Works, which provides employment opportunities for people with disabilities, to offer heavily discounted compost bins.

Prices start at £15.9. To buy a bin, or for more information, call 01793 464646 or go online at www.seqol.org/enterprise-works.

Green waste can also be taken for composting to the Household Waste Recycling Centre, in Cheney Manor Industrial estate, where the extended summer opening hours will apply from Sunday, March 30.

As the weather improves the site gets busier, particularly at weekends and during bank holidays, so residents are reminded of the webcam on the website www.swindon.gov.uk/wastewebcam which means they can check on queues before setting off.