Tonnes of compostable waste has been collected in the first week of Swindon Borough Council's new recycling scheme.

But some residents are still putting their plastic recycling in the wrong container - and some are putting the wrong sort of plastic waste out.

After the first week of the roll-out of a new scheme where council recycling and bin crews now collect kitchen scraps and leftovers put out in black plastic caddies at thousands of households across Swindon every week.

The aim was to keep such waste out of the steam of rubbish going to landfill, which is taxed increasingly.

A spokesperson for Swindon Borough Council said: "A huge thank you to everyone who has embraced the waste and recycling service changes.

“Our crews have successfully completed over 99,000 waste and recycling collections last week, with many working overtime to get as many collected as possible.

“We collected over 80 tonnes of food waste last week which is a brilliant start so thanks for your support.”

But the wholesale changes in both routes, the way things are collected and processed and the ways in which residents are asked to put out their recycling have caused some teething problems.

And the council wants to remind people that plastic waste, in particular, should go in the weighted woven blue bags, along with washed-out and squashed tins and cans.

The spokesman said: “With such significant changes, there’s bound to be some issues which we’ve been working. To help our crews out, please remember that any plastic recycling placed in a single-use, plastic bag, cannot be collected.

“Currently crews are having to split the bags by hand as they can no longer be processed. If you haven’t had your bagged plastic collected, please take it out of the bag and place it loose into  your weighted reusable bag or another sturdy container.

“We still cannot recycle flexible plastics that can be scrunched in your hand, such bags used for salads or vegetables, crisp packets and cling food wrap. Please place these in your general waste or take to your local supermarket for recycling.”