WILTSHIRE Council has confirmed that the booking system for its household recycling centres (HRCs) will end next week.

From Monday, July 19, people will be able to visit a site without booking in advance.

When attending their local HRC, people should still expect some changes in place to protect the staff, such as some parking spaces removed on some sites.

Under the new government guidance, while people are expected to be able to make their own decisions on face masks and social distancing, they should still ensure they respect the teams on site and other HRC users by keeping their distance during their visit.

Councillor Dr Mark McClelland, Cabinet Member for Waste, said: “We’re pleased to be able to end the booking system at our HRCs, and we hope this will enable more people to visit to recycle their waste at a time to suit them.

“We have tried to ensure visits to HRCs from 19 July are as normal as possible, but to protect staff and the public there may be a few changes in place at some sites, though we have tried to keep these to a minimum to make visits easy for our residents.

“To keep our staff and residents safe, people should still keep their distance, and our teams are not able to help people to remove waste from their vehicles, or help people move their waste while on the sites – people with heavy items should bring a friend or family member to help them lift and dispose of their waste.

“There may also be queuing on entry to the site, so would ask people to first consider whether their visit is necessary, and to be considerate to the site staff and other users if the sites are busy when they visit.

“We’re looking forward to reopening all ten HRCs in the county to non-booked visits.”

Anyone with any COVID-19 symptoms – such as a high temperature; a new, continuous cough; or a loss or change to smell or taste – should not visit a HRC and should follow the latest public health advice.

There are ten HRCs in Wiltshire; each site has different opening times and some can take different types of waste, so people are advised to check opening times and what they can take to their local HRC before setting off. There may be queuing at peak times.

For more information and opening times, click here.

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