WARRINGTON Borough Council has announced that the Gatewarth community recycling centre (CRC) has reopened today, Monday 11 May.
Council members and officers are working tirelessly to ensure the safe, phased reopening of Warrington’s CRCs to ensure that should residents need to make essential trips to dispose of household waste, they can do so in the knowledge that the council has made every possible step to ensure their safety.
Gatewarth CRC is now open 8am-8pm seven days a week, but with strict restrictions and traffic management in place. Despite being open until 8pm, if queues are very long, residents may be turned away earlier if it’s likely they will be queuing beyond 8pm to get into the CRC.
Residents are urged only to travel to Gatewarth CRC if any household waste cannot be safely stored at home. Additional measures are in place to protect residents and staff at the site:
· Access is permitted for cars only. No vans, vehicle trailers, commercial vehicles or pedestrians will be allowed in
· Only one person is permitted per car, unless you are a blue badge holder
· Due to social distancing restrictions, our staff will not be able to help with unloading or lifting items, so only take to the tip what you can safely dispose of yourself
· Only bagged household waste will be accepted
· We will be operating a one-in, one-out system to ensure people can dispose of their waste safely, so expect lengthy queues
· To help prevent people travelling to the CRC from outside Warrington, residents will be asked for evidence of their address, and so need to take a recent utility bill, council tax bill or proof of address to display in their car windscreen
· Residents are reminded to observe the social distancing rules when on site, so please be considerate and patient with one another
· Residents who are abusive, intimidating or clearly flout the national guidance will have access to the CRC removed
· There will be comprehensive traffic management in place on site. Lengthy queues are expected and residents may be asked to leave and return later
Leader of the Council, Cllr Russ Bowden said: “I’d like to thank officers who have been working around the clock to ensure the safe reopening of Gatewarth. We will also look to open Stockton Heath and Woolston community recycling centres as soon as we know that we can do so in as safe a manner as possible.
“Please remember only to come to Gatewarth CRC if you have an essential need. We are not opening the tip for people to dispose of rubbish after a spring clean – we are opening for waste that absolutely cannot be stored safely at home.
“We’ve seen in other areas in the region that when CRCs have reopened, people have had to queue for hours to dispose of their waste. I can only thank residents for their patience so far whilst we’ve worked to open up Gatewarth, ask you to consider if a trip to the tip is essential and – if it is – that you understand you might have to wait a while to dispose of your rubbish.”
Cllr Judith Guthrie, cabinet member for environment and public protection, added: “It’s important to only make a trip to the tip for essential purposes. If you really can’t wait, be prepared for a delay, listen to the directions from our staff on site and ensure you follow the signage. Remember, unlike some other areas, we have been able to collect all household waste streams as normal thanks to our outstanding kerbside collection crews. This includes staff members who have joined the crews from other services to ensure we continue to deliver a full service to our households. If you are therefore able to continue relying on kerbside collection to remove your waste, that would ease the burden on the CRC considerably.
“Please also remember that if you or someone in your household is displaying symptoms of coronavirus, however mild, you should stay at home and follow the self-isolation guidance. This means staying at home for seven days if you have symptoms and live alone, or staying at home for 14 days if someone in your household is displaying symptoms.”
For the latest updates on Warrington’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, visit warrington.gov.uk/coronavirus
Gatewarth community recycling centre has reopened today, Monday 11 May ♻️ We're expecting it to be extremely busy, so only come if you need to make an absolutely essential trip: https://t.co/4QFoARe2gl pic.twitter.com/V1XdbAnOvY
— Warrington Borough Council (@WarringtonBC) May 11, 2020
