As you’re probably aware, because there’s been lots of people kicking up a scene, Wiltshire Council’s recycling centre booking system being trialled at Devizes, Lower Compton, Melksham, Purton, Salisbury and Stanton St Quintin has been running for a fortnight. I’ve got accumulated stuff, a wife subtly hinting, and not much to do on a Sunday morning, so, bugger, old age has reduced me to reviewing my trip to the tip!
How to book a slot at one of these sites can be found on the Household Recycling Centre Booking System Pilot page of Wiltshire Council’s website, and it was a piece of cake. A multi-tiered pedestal cake stand, in fact, with loads of slots available, even on a Sunday. No cake for me yet, but a cup of tea, load up the car in the same clothes I went out in last night, and I’m off, bossing it like a Womble.
Number plate check, and I’m in there faster than Tom Jones on the pull; no waiting, no fuss nor foreplay, straight into a slot dry, helpful staff, back home in half an hour, still no cake though. The niggly first world problem was, when the trial system was announced, so many people were kicking up a fuss on social media about how this booking in system approaches on their civil liberties, for their right to spontaneous bouts of decluttering, councillors “of the people” had to make a stance for or against, side with popular opinion or honesty, to determine they keep their seats.
The reality is it may take some tweaking, to account for those with travel issues, uncertain work hours, or even disabilities, and like any trial system you’re going to get teething troubles. But from what I’ve seen, it works, better, and saves queuing traffic at peak times.
You can talk to councillors for hours, they all go on a bit, let them sound their views from the hilltops, but the real people you should be asking about how the system is working out are surely the staff there, because they’re the ones who have to deal with it daily; you just dump your load there every so often!
It took just an unbiased three second interview with a staff member deliberately unaware he was going to be quoted. I asked him how the new system was going for them personally, as they’re the ones who have to work with it. He answered it was “much better,” and waved me on. Bingo; no hour long debate from a councillor, just straight from the horse’s mouth!
If you’re going to throw your toys out of your pram, you should note, to separate the metals from the plastics. Equally, if councillors are worried about going against the ballyhoo of popular Facebook warrior whinging, they should note their seats go into the scrap metal bin, but really, it’s a storm in a teacup, people, become accustomed to change, it’s what makes the world go round; and if the staff there prefer it, I support it.
The only issue with it I found was that Wiltshire Council can’t spell Stanton St Quintin on their website!
