Press release – 15 Aug 2013
Happy recyclers voice their approval
The results of a survey into the performance of Blackburn with Darwen’s Household Waste Recycling Centre’s (HWRC’s) has revealed exactly what local residents think of them.
The survey was undertaken in June on behalf of Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council by Groundwork Pennine Lancashire, the biggest environmental charity in the county.
Over 500 users of the Council’s two facilities at George Street West in Blackburn and Springvale Road in Darwen were asked to comment on how they used the sites and how satisfied they were with various aspects of the site’s performance.
The survey showed that the average visitor satisfaction rate was around 99 per cent across ten separate questions on customer satisfaction, which asked for a response on matters such as access to the site, site cleanliness, the range of recycling services available and the helpfulness of staff.
“This is great news,” said Ian Burfoot, Senior Site Manager for SITA UK, which was awarded a five year contract to manage Blackburn with Darwen’s two household waste recycling centres in September 2011. “We’ve invested £130,000 in site improvements since taking on responsibility for the sites. These include new containers and signs to better direct people where to go as well as new compaction equipment and better amenities for staff. Blackburn with Darwen Council has also made significant investment in resurfacing works at the sites.”
These improvements were noted in the survey, which revealed that 82 per cent of visitors could not identify any further on-site improvements that may be necessary compared to 21 per cent in 2011/12.
Ian added, “We’re now recycling around 70 per cent (69.67 per cent) of the waste that is brought to the sites, which exceed the Council’s target of 65 per cent. However, there is still room for improvement and we would urge everyone that visits either of the two facilities to help us do even more to divert waste from landfill and put it to better use.”
Executive Member for Environment Housing and Neighbourhoods, Cllr Jim Smith stated “We strive hard to provide the best possible waste services to residents, whilst encouraging them to recycle as much of their ‘rubbish’ as possible – whether at home or at one of the household waste recycling sites. The hard work and investment that the Council and SITA UK has made appears to be appreciated by our residents”
