Wakefield Council tried to fine waste company over late bin rounds and 'data inaccuracies', government papers show

Documents released under the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act showed that Renewi was charged multiple times in 2019 after falling short on some of its obligations.

Some of the fines related to problems linked to people’s bins being collected late and for “data inaccuracies” in information it provided about its service.

Renewi, formerly known as Shanks, runs a recycling plant in South Kirkby and Glasshoughton, as well as a tip in Denby Dale Road where household waste is processed on the council's behalf.

How many times Renewi was fined, and how much, remains a mystery, however.

The government department for the environment (Defra) said that that information was commercially sensitive and removed it from the documents it released.

But Renewi did dispute some of the fines, the documents said, and it is not known whether those disputes were ever resolved.

Both Wakefield Council and Renewi declined to comment about the fines when approached.

The company earned a £750m PFI contract from the council in 2013 to handle the district's domestic waste, but the council can withhold cash if parts of the deal are not being met.

The papers said some of the fines, referred to as "performance deductions", were for a "failure to comply" with a 20 minute time limit for delivery vehicles going in and out of one of the sites.

That issue has previously been linked to a spike in complaints from residents between April and June last year about bins going uncollected.

The council later attributed the problem to "teething issues".

Renewi also failed inspections of its facilities and was told it had not resolved technical issues quickly enough.

It was also too slow to fix data inaccuracies flagged up by the council, the papers said.

Renewi declined to comment on the revelations, stating it would be a breach of its contract to do so.

Wakefield Council also said it was unable to comment.

It declined to reveal how much the company had been charged, citing "standard business practice", although it has previously disclosed how much it fined one of its other PFI partners.

At the end of 2019, the council revealed it was fining property firm Engie an average of £15,000 a month for failing to fulfil all of its responsibilities.

The papers also revealed how council staff voiced "concerns" over the cleanliness of the South Kirkby site run by Renewi.

Bad smells coming from the depot have been a cause for complaint by local residents on numerous occasions previously.

In response to that, the council's service director for the environment, Glynn Humphries said: "We have been working closely with Renewi to introduce new cleaning procedures at our household waste treatment plant in South Kirkby to deal with any spillages and ensure the safety of employees."

Renewi said they were unable to comment as the paper as the issue had been discussed at a meeting between the council and Defra where the company was not present.

But a spokeswoman for the firm added that keeping the site clean was a "critical activity at all times".

Local Democracy Reporting Service

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