Published Wednesday 13 May 2020 at 10:02
Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council is set to reopen its household waste recycling centres on Monday 18th May – here’s all your questions answered!
Recap – what are HWRCs, who are they for and how do they usually operate?
Tips, civic amenity sites, dumps – all names for what are now known as household waste recycling centres or ‘HWRCs’ for short.
They have been provided by councils for around 50 years as places local residents can take large items of rubbish/recyclables to and all those items that cannot go in your wheelie bins – like paint, asbestos etc.
In Blackburn with Darwen, only residents who live in the borough can visit which is why users have to show proof of address when they arrive.
This is because HWRCs are expensive to run and the council wants to provide value for money for its residents.
Proof of address can be:
- a current Council Tax bill
- a valid driving licence
- a recent mortgage, bank or credit card statement
The HWRCs are for the disposal/recycling of household waste only.
They cannot be used for business waste or business activity, such as the waste from a plumber, a shop, factory, building firm, garden landscaping firm etc.
Recap – permits for access for vans, trailers, construction waste
The council runs two different permit schemes:
- Vans and trailers – residents can access the sites using one of these but they can only use the sites 12 times a year and they must bring their permit card with them as well as proof of residency
Due to the high level of demand expected when the HWRCs reopen, we are having to temporarily suspend new applications.
These will be reinstated as soon as possible – please keep checking the household waste recycling page at blackburn.gov.uk
2 Construction waste – any vehicle can dispose of this waste but residents must have a permit and they can only dispose of up to 12 bags per annum.
Again, you must bring the permit when you visit as well as proof of residency
Opening hours and locations
The address for the Blackburn site is
George Street West – postcode: BB2 1PQ
The address for the Darwen site is
Springvale Road – postcode BB3 2ES
The two sites will reopen on Monday, May 18th.
They will then be open every day including bank holidays – except Christmas day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.
From the 1st April to 30th Sept, the opening times are 8am to 7pm and between 1st Oct and 31st March it’s 8am to 5pm.
The sites are usually closed one day a week (Tuesdays in Darwen and Wednesdays in Blackburn) but they will reopen 7 days a week initially to help cope with demand.
Why did you close the sites when people are having to stay at home and want to get rid of rubbish?
The government introduced strict restrictions as part of the coronavirus lockdown to protect all residents.
This is the worst public health crisis in our lifetimes.
Under the restrictions, no one could leave their home without ‘reasonable excuse’ which did not include trips to the HWRCs.
The HWRCs could only reopen if the ‘service was not being provided in another form.’
Thanks to the fantastic efforts of our bin crews, collections managed to continue as normal right across Blackburn with Darwen and so we couldn’t justify reopening the HWRCs.
New government guidance was issued on May 5th.
It said councils could reopen their sites as long as it was practicable to do so and providing strict social distancing can be maintained.
DEFRA guidance stresses that members of the public should not visit a HWRC if they are:
- extremely vulnerable and are remaining at home for shielding purposes
- displaying symptoms of coronavirus (COVID-19)
- in a 14-day household isolation
DEFRA also urges residents to only make journeys to HWRCs if the waste or recycling cannot be stored at home safely.
If residents can temporarily store their waste or recycling in a way that does not pose a risk to them or others safety or human health, then they must do so.
Arrangements for accessing the sites during the coronavirus pandemic
Booking and queueing questions
Q: How do I book a slot to take rubbish to the waste (HWRC) centre?
A: Please ring 01254 585585
Slots can be booked up to a week in advance, but they cannot be amended once made.
If you need to make a change, you will need to cancel your existing appointment and rebook.
If you are unable to make your selected time, please cancel so we can offer the slot to someone else.
Q: Why do I need to book to visit the HWRC?
A: Compared to other local authorities, our sites are considered small and so in order to be able to reopen and ensure social distancing guidelines can be adhered to, we have introduced new measures – including the booking system.
This is to keep our residents and staff safe.
It will also help manage traffic around the areas when the HWRCs reopen and a high level of demand is expected.
Q: Why can I only book one slot per week?
A: One slot is available per household per week.
This is because we are anticipating a significant demand for slots when we reopen and we need to give as many people as possible the chance to visit.
Q: What proof of address is required?
A: Please bring a current Council tax statement, recent mortgage/ bank statement or a valid driving licence with your current address on.
Q: Will I still be allowed in if I forget my proof of address?
A: You will need to go back home and get it but you will have to join the back of the queue or or if you cannot make it back within your 30 minute slot time, you will need to rebook another slot.
Q: How long will I have to wait to get in?
A: This all depends on how well people ahead of you have sorted their items before they arrive and how quickly they unload their items.
We will also have to close the sites at some points during the day to exchange full skips so the more people recycle, the less time you will wait.
Q: Why do you need my phone number for the booking?
A: This is important for adhering to social distancing rules as it means our staff will be able to ring you in case there is an emergency on site while you’re there or if they need to give you instructions.
Q: Why don’t you open the sites 7 days a week?
A: We will be doing for a period of time, and we will keep one day each week at the sites just for vans and for people taking construction waste.
Vans and people disposing of construction waste will not be permitted to use the sites on the other 6 days of the week.
This will avoid the larger vehicles taking longer to unload so we can maintain a reasonable flow of traffic at the site.
Q: I have a van/ construction permit which has expired and I need to renew my permit but your web site isn’t allowing me to do so. Why is this?
A: Due to the high demand we are expecting when the sites reopen, we have temporarily suspended new applications and renewals.
We will introduce this as soon as we can.
Waste types and unloading
Q: Are there any skips that wont be available?
A: No, unlike some local authorities, we are accepting all types of waste from when we reopen.
Q: How long do I have to unload?
A: We would expect each customer to have unloaded within 5 minutes – even allowing for using different skips for recycling different items.
Each person has a 30 minute slot in which to deposit their waste material.
When you arrive and enter the queue, once your ID has been checked along with your booking, you will be allowed entry and have until the slot time has ended to remove your items and deposit them in the provided skips.
Q: Where do I put the item(s) that I have with me?
A: The normal skips will be available.
If you are unsure what does in which skip, please ask the site staff from a safe distance.
Please note, due to the guidelines, staff will not be able to help you unload your waste into the skips/containers
Social distancing and HWRC staff help questions
Q: What controls will be in place to keep customers and staff safe at the site?
A: Your safety and the safety of staff at the HWRCs is our priority.
We have introduced the following measures to help, but please remember that you must only visit if it’s absolutely necessary:
- There will be lots of signs in the HWRC to direct people – please read them carefully
- Customers with coronavirus symptoms or those living in a household where someone has symptoms are not allowed to visit the sites
- A limited number of vehicles will be allowed in at one time
- There’ll be a maximum of 2 people from the same household per vehicle – and this should only be if there is a heavy item that requires 2 people to lift
- Vehicles in the HWRC will have to park away from each other
- Staff at the HWRC site cannot help unload heavy items as this will break the 2m rule
- Only one customer may use a skip at one time
- Surfaces will be wiped down regularly
- All residents and staff are required to wear gloves at the site.
- You may wear your own face covering/mask at the site if you so wish
- Action will be taken with customers who do not follow the social distancing rules
Q; Can staff give verbal advice
A: Yes, but you must maintain a safe 2 metre distance
Terms and conditions
You can read a full list of terms and conditions here