Notice of Motion- HWRS Booking System Briefing Note

Proposed · This went to the meeting on Tue 14 Jul 2026. What was decided is in that meeting's minutes.

Councillor Kathryn Field and Councillor Stephen Holt have put forward a Notice of Motion asking the Cabinet to consider discontinuing, with immediate effect, the booking system at Household Waste Recycling Sites (HWRS) run by East Sussex County Council (ESCC). p2p8p9

The motion says that residents who do not use the system feel excluded from disposing of their waste, and that the system has had an impact on charity shops and on waste bins provided by Parish Councils. p6p7

The note states that the waste team found no evidence the system has increased low-quality charity shop donations or affected Parish Council waste collections, and that it shows no material impact on fly tipping tonnages across the county. p59p61p53

Residents can book online or by telephone, same-day bookings are possible at the busiest sites including Hastings, and ending the system would require at least three months' notice plus any reasonable termination costs owed to Veolia. p32p33p31

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• p2Date: 14 July 2026 1. Introduction: 1.1 The Notice of Motion at 1.2 submitted by Councillor Kathryn Field and Councillor Stephen Holt calls upon the Cabinet to consider discontinuing the booking system at Household Waste Recycling Sites (HWRS). The Notice also states that the booking system has had an impact on charity shops and on waste bins provided by Parish Councils.
• p6However, residents who, for whatever reason, do not use the system are dissatisfied and believe that they have been excluded from the ability to dispose of their waste.
• p7This Council further accepts that the inability of residents to access HWRS without forward planning has had an impact on charity shops and on waste bins provided by Parish Councils.
• p8This Council requests that the Cabinet consider, as a matter of urgency, discontinuing the booking system at Household Waste Recycling Sites, with immediate effect.
• p92. Background information 2.1 East Sussex County Council (ESCC) operates a network of ten HWRS, which collectively received approximately 1.4 million visits and handled around 55,000 tonnes of waste and recycling in 2024/25. Visit data is being finalised for 2025/26. Tonnage handled at the HWRSs in 2025/26 was 52,700.
• p31£579,683 3.9 A decision to terminate the system would require a minimum notice period of three months. Additionally, ESCC would be liable for any reasonable termination costs incurred by Veolia under the contract.
• p32Booking system appointments 3.10 Residents can make a booking to visit a site by visiting Book a visit to the tip | East Sussex County Council or by calling 0345 60 80 194 8.30am to 5pm Monday to Friday (4.30pm on Fridays).
• p333.11 Residents are neither limited nor restricted in their ability to bring waste to the sites and can make same ‑ day bookings, subject to slot availability. It is possible to make same day bookings at the busiest sites in the network, which are Eastbourne, Hastings and Newhaven.
• p534.6 The booking system was introduced in November 2025 so fly tipping tonnages for November 2025 to April 2026 have been compared with the same period in 2024/25. Table 4 shows a small increase of 20 tonnes. The booking system shows no material impact on fly tipping tonnages recorded across the county.
• p594.7 The Notice of Motion does not provide any evidence of an impact on charity shops. The waste team has been unable to find any evidence that the booking system has increased low-quality charity shop donations. The third sector, particularly textile recycling, is facing significant challenges, with several national collectors including the Salvation Army experiencing disruption to operations in early 2026, affecting donation flows. This can be seen in overflowing textile banks at supermarket sites. The decline in donation quality is a long-term trend driven by factors such as fast fashion, low-cost production, higher consumption of inexpensive goods, and the lack of producer responsibility for disposal and recycling.
• p61Parish Council collected waste 4.9 The Notice of Motion does not provide evidence to support the claim that Parish Councils have been affected. To date, there have been no reports made to ESCC of any increase in waste collected by Parish Councils. Waste collection services are primarily delivered by district and borough councils, with no reported issues to the ESCC waste team who work in partnership readily, to share and support both waste collection and disposal services across the county.