Salford Council charges the highest amount for bulky waste collection in the North West – and has one of the highest rates of fly-tipping in Greater Manchester, new data reveals.
Cost Comparison Across Greater Manchester
The council tops the chart with an 'extortionate' £52.50 for a single item, though the price stays the same for up to four items. That's more than double the regional average of £25 for a single item, while one fifth of councils offer at least one collection for free.
After Salford, residents in Cheshire East pay the most – at £50.84 for up to three items – followed by Bury with £49, Wirral with £45 and Trafford with £44. The lowest in the region are the seven local authorities who collect up to three bulky items for free: Blackburn with Darwen; Hyndburn; Liverpool; Manchester; Pendle; Rochdale; and Wigan.
In Greater Manchester, local authorities rank as follows:
- Salford (£52.50 for up to four items)
- Bury (£49 for up to five items)
- Trafford (£44.10 for up to five items)
- Bolton (£41 for up to five items, plus one free collection for those eligible for council tax support)
- Tameside (£38 for up to five items, pensioners can have white goods collected for free)
- Stockport (£30 for one item, £50 for two, and £80 for up to eight)
- Oldham (£10 for one item)
- Rochdale (two free collections for up to three items each, then £12 for further collections of up to three items and an additional £8 for each item over three)
- Wigan (two free collections of up to five items, then £27 for up to five items)
- Manchester (free for one collection, then £32 for up to three items, and £64 for up to six items)
Criticism and Fly-Tipping Impact
Mark Hall, a Salford waste management expert from BusinessWaste, said: “It’s clear to see there is a real postcode lottery for bulky waste collections across the UK, with some councils providing a free service while the minimum charge from others nears £100.” He added the service 'should be kept at an accessible price point' to help keep streets clean.
Salford council has already come under fire for its high charges. At a council meeting earlier this year, councillors claimed the prohibitive cost was 'driving illegal fly-tipping' and playing into the hands of rogue traders, who undercut the council's price point only to illegally dump the rubbish in a different neighbourhood.
In the last year, the borough has seen 7,619 instances of illegal waste dumping. That's the second-highest in the city region, costing the council more than £400,000 to clear up. This includes the 'horrendous' case of 200 tonnes of waste left at the Cambridge industrial estate in Broughton in January this year.
Councillor Lewis Croden, deputy leader of the opposition, said: “This is a disgrace. In Little Hulton these extortionate charges are fuelling fly-tipping while ordinary families are already being squeezed by the cost of living crisis. It’s creating a rising tide of casework for the environmental team and dumping extra costs on housing providers like ForHousing who have to clear waste from their land. The council must reduce these fees now — enough is enough.”
When asked if the local authority planned to change the price of bulky waste collection, the LDRS did not receive a response. Salford Council did not respond to a request for comment.
