“Following further consideration and having listened carefully to feedback from the public and affected businesses, councillors have made a final decision that the council will continue to provide a trade waste refuse collection service but will no longer provide a full, trade recycling service.

“The council will also continue to collect from some businesses known as ‘schedule 2’ businesses, who pay for both trade refuse and recycling, but whose refuse and recycling are collected on domestic rounds by domestic round crews. Most of these customers are smaller holiday lets, who qualify for small business rate relief. Most importantly, their business waste and recycling is collected in small boxes and bags and are on our normal, domestic collection rounds.

"The council’s wider trade recycling service will cease.

“This decision reflects the differing costs, operational requirements and future regulatory changes associated with each service.

“In line with the requirement to give at least two months’ notice, the service will end on 31 March 2026. This is the contract end date previously notified to customers in correspondence issued on 16 January 2026, which still stands. Following today’s decision, all affected customers will be contacted as soon as possible with clear information about what this means for their current service and any changes that will apply.

“All councillors were also keen to ensure that the reintroduced service is operated on a cost recovery basis, and as a result, there will be an increase in fees charged. Customers will be contacted directly in due course with full details of any changes to charges.

“As set out in the letter previously sent to affected businesses, the council will support customers to make alternative arrangements for recycling collections and will provide further information directly. Schools will be contacted separately to confirm that their trade refuse collections will continue unchanged, while details of changes to the method and schedule of their recycling collections will be provided.

"All customers will receive an email from us today, followed by a letter, clarifying the decision that has been taken today by the Strategy & Resources committee."