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You are here: CIWM  >  Publications  >  Latest News  >  Local Authorities Ditch Outsourcing For Sharing, Waste Trend Survey Reveals

Local Authorities Ditch Outsourcing For Sharing, Waste Trend Survey Reveals

17 August 2011

A Whitespace survey on waste and environmental trends involving senior waste staff in over 50 local authorities has reveal that increasing recycling rates and reducing landfill are major priorities and challenges over the next 12 months

Reducing carbon footprint and overall costs were other key targets.

Those surveyed also indicated a growing desire to share waste and environmental services with other Councils and the majority believes that increasing service satisfaction is still critical to success.

With budgets tightening, innovative ways to get results are being practiced - with over 57 percent of respondents revealing they will be increasingly sharing services in waste and environmental operations over the next year with other councils.

The strategy of sharing, rather than outsourcing, appears to be the preferred option, with 70 percent indicating no commitment to outsourcing more council services over the next year.

The survey indicated that improving customer service and addressing the Government's new waste policy will also figure highly over the next year for Councils' waste departments.

Over 65 percent respondents are specifically planning to improve the use of Council enforcement activities.

While 85 percent believe that increasing service satisfaction will be just as important as revenue generation and cost reduction, over the next two years.

The survey also shows an 80 percent agreement that technology will play an increasingly key role in helping local authority waste and environmental operations deliver services more efficiently.

Voted overwhelmingly at 75 percent, was the use of mobile and back office technology, which is considered as increasingly important over the next year - especially for fleet monitoring and route optimisation. However, the cross-Council sharing of IT is still being considered, with 40 percent of respondents indicating a definite interest in pursuing this.

Nigel Bridges, managing director at Whitespace WS said: "Our survey shows that across UK Councils, despite operating in a 'frugal' environment, there is a real sense of innovation, with sharing of services and a strong desire to enhance services - geared to recycling, reducing waste and landfill. There also seems to be a strong trend of technology adoption to underpin best practice service delivery - more effectively and at lower cost."