Tooting: Recycling in borough lambasted as resident asks for sacks five times without reply

A Labour councillor has lambasted Wandsworth Council after many have complained about ordering recycling sacks and not receiving them.

Paula Walker, a councillor of the Queenstown ward, says that Wandsworth Labour has had a number of complaints from residents all around the borough about the situation and that residents want a new system.

In fact, one Tooting resident on Twitter, James Murphy, claims to have made a request on five separate occasions over the last year and has not received any recycling bags or any communication regarding the situation.

Murphy is not the only Wandsworth resident to have an issue ordering recycling sacks online - a simple search on Twitter shows many others with the exact same issue over the last month. Kristy says she has "been ordering for months with no luck", Beth said on August 9 that she had ordered some in July without any turning up and Ann said that she had been requesting them every fortnight to no prevail , each time receiving confirmation of her order but without the sacks ever arriving.

Wandsworth Council has claimed that the bags are too big for the letterboxes, causing many residents and other passersby to pick them up. The council also reiterated for people to get in touch with them if they have run out of sacks.

What Wandsworth Labour has said

Paula Walker told us that residents want a system whereby they can access council officers to get things done.

She said: "We've had complaints from residents all around the borough.

"There are two problems. One is getting hold of the sacks, the second is getting hold of the council on this problem or anything else.

"Residents want an accessible system where they can access council officers to get things done.

"Meanwhile, Wandsworth has one of the worst recycling rates in the country."

What Wandsworth Council has said

Tooting Nub News asked Wandsworth Council about the situation.

The council did not respond to the questions regarding specific incidents, however, did provide a statement giving more information and encouraging those to still make requests for sacks if they run out of them.

A Wandsworth Council spokesperson said: "Our clear sack recycling scheme is in operation at around 80,000 homes in the borough that each have their own individual doorstep refuse and recycling collections. The scheme doesn't apply at blocks of flats with communal waste disposal facilities. These high rise buildings are instead provided with communal recycling bins.

"We automatically deliver replacement sacks free of charge three times a year and will provide additional quantities on request and because of their bulky size they are normally left on people's doorsteps as it can be difficult to fit them through letterboxes. Unfortunately, this means that in some cases, the sacks are picked up by neighbours or passers-by – especially in parts of the borough with high footfall. If people have ordered sacks and they haven't arrived please let us know and we'll arrange another delivery."

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