Elderly Cubbington residents want new printed calendar for bin collections

Older Cubbington residents want a new printed calendar for their weekly household bin collections.

Cubbington Parish Council has written to Warwick District Council (WDC) asking it to send a printed timetables for the weekly collections to help those residents who do not use a computer or smart phone and are unsure or nervous about calling helplines.

The council has recently reminded people that there are numerous ways in which they can check which bins to leave out each week.

But Cubbington Parish Councillor David Saul says that this does not help everybody.

Cllr Saul said: “We find that elderly people are more conscientious about putting their bins out so this [printed timetable] would be mainly for them.

"Young people tend to use the app or the WDC website but, as one resident said to me "I don’t have a computer" and I don’t have one either.

"I feel that, by not printing these timetables, WDC are taking away people’s independence and not giving residents what they deserve.”

WDC has said that the calendars printed, produced and posted out at the start of the new 123+ service last year were designed to introduce residents to the new service and get them used to the collection cycle.

Information and a calendar of collection dates for the next six months is available on WDC’s website and since the introduction of the new 123+ service one year ago, 21,000 residents have downloaded the council’s app, which provides weekly notifications to tell you which bin to put out when with additional information on how and where different materials can be recycled.

Most recently residents are being encouraged to ‘Ask Alexa’ for an update on their collection day and also to ask whether an item can be recycled thanks to the introduction of Alexa Skill.

Alexa Skill is free to use, but residents will need to have access to an Alexa enabled device and an Amazon account and ensure that their address details are saved in the Alexa app.

To use the service, customers can say either ‘Alexa, ask Warwick District Council: when is my recycling collected?’ or ‘Alexa, ask Warwick District Council: can I recycle (then say the item)’.

Councillor Will Roberts, Portfolio Holder for Neighbourhood, said: “It’s great to be able to use technology to make it even easier for our residents to access our services and get the information they need, reducing our environmental impact.

“However we do recognise that not everyone has access to or relies on the internet, so if this applies to you please contact us on 01926 456123 or email [email protected] and we can advise you on the alternative arrangements that can be made.”

More information on how to use the Alexa Skill, including a short tutorial video, can be found at www.warwickdc.gov.uk/alexa