North Lanarkshire Council's Community Services Committee yesterday (Wednesday 15 March) approved a new charging structure for the council's special uplift service in an effort to boost performance and reduce the potential for mis-use of the service.

Coming into operation on 1 April, the new structure will provide one free special uplift per household per year, with the introduction of a £15 charge for each subsequent special uplift.

A standing charge of £40 for the uplift of commercial waste will also be introduced - items to be charged under this category will be subject to inspection and approval by a council officer.

The charge is being introduced in response to the growing number of special uplift requests received each year (an increase of around 12 per cent over the last three years), which has seen demand exceed the council's capacity to respond effectively.

It is hoped that the introduction of the new charging structure will help improve the level of service delivered to residents and allow for future investment in the special uplift service.

And special uplifts are not the only way to get rid of unwanted bulky items - this is being complemented by major improvements in the council's waste disposal and recycling centres, which are benefiting from more than £3 million investment between 2005/06 and 2006/07.

More than £900,000 was invested in Wardpark in Cumbernauld (which opened in November), and £1.8 million is being spent on two new facilities in Coatbridge and Wishaw, which will open in the summer.

Councillor Jim Logue, Convener of the Community Services Committee, said the council was committed to providing the best level of service possible to residents requesting special uplifts. He added:

"We have been looking at a variety of options to improve the performance of our special uplift service for more than two years now and we are now taking a significant step forward.

"We have looked at the performance issues we are facing on a daily basis, we have looked for examples of best practice and assessed what other authorities are doing, and we have sought advice from both internal and external auditors. And our only truly viable option is to limit the number of free uplifts, which means introducing a charge for the service.

"Our best estimate is that, as the service currently stands, we need around half a million pounds to invest in additional vehicles and employees - and anything that could help achieve this has to be welcomed."

The £15 charge - which is less than the Scottish average of around £17 (based on a survey carried out in January 2005) - will only be incurred by households after they have received one free special uplift in any financial year.

More than half the local authorities in Scotland now charge in some way for special uplifts, although the criteria for charging vary from council to council.

To measure the success of the introduction of charges for special uplifts, North Lanarkshire Council has set a target of completing at least 85 per cent of special uplifts on the day allocated to the householder within the appointment system.

Councillor Logue concluded: "We know that there can be a lengthy waiting period for special uplifts in some areas and our aim is to turn that around. By setting ourselves specific targets, we can monitor the impact of the new charging mechanism and assess if we really are making a difference.

"We are already making a big difference thanks to the significant investment in our waste disposal and recycling centres and this has produced some incredible results. For example, in Wardpark in Cumbernauld our recycling rates have increased from around 25% to an amazing 100% in just three months.

"This is a trend we very much want to see continue and we hope to see a significant improvement over the next few months. We will continue to review our special uplift service to ensure it plays its part in keeping North Lanarkshire streetsmart."

North Lanarkshire Council operates seven waste disposal and recycling centres - Dalmacoulter in Airdrie, Souterhouse Road in Coatbridge, Reema Road in Bellshill, Meadow Road in Motherwell, Belhaven Road in Wishaw, and Auchinlea in Cleland.

Each civic amenity site or recycling centre is open between 8am and 8pm, seven days a week.

To request a special uplift, contact the council's customer contact centre on 01698 403110.

ends

Note to editors:

Charges for special uplift services only apply to requests placed on or after 1 April 2006. For household uplifts, the charge will only be incurred after one free uplift has been provided.