Shepshed's tip is reopening and you can book slots now

Shepshed's recycling and waste centre will be one of eight operating in Leicestershire when it reopens next week.

The first seven sites are open seven days per week, while Shepshed will retain its original five-day operating pattern, including weekends. 

All sites require members of the public to book in advance online, to ensure social distancing can be maintained.

Bookings at waste sites are steady, says the council, with between 600 and 1400 bookings per day – and over 41,000 bookings in total so far since sites re-opened in mid-May.

There has been good availability at all sites, with Mountsorrel and Lount the busiest – at 90 per cent capacity most days. 

New slots for all sites are released weekly, and bookings for Shepshed will open today (Friday 19 June). Site users can now book two slots per fortnight.

Other changes at sites include different types of waste/ recycling being accepted, and cars with trailers being allowed on site for the first time on Wednesday and Thursday mornings. Visitors to sites will now be able to bring cardboard and scrap metal.

Traffic management was in place when sites first re-opened, but this has now been relaxed and currently there are no traffic marshals in place.  

The booking system has helped ensure queuing has been minimised and residents can safely use waste sites without delay.

Councillor Trevor Pendleton, county council cabinet member for waste disposal, said, “We’d like to thank everyone who has visited the sites for using the booking system, turning up for their slots on time and helping us to make everything run smoothly and keep everybody safe. 

“We also appreciate that, in some situations, people have had to travel further than they normally would to dispose of waste. We have at least one site open in each district, and even without all of our sites being open, each site in Leicestershire serves a smaller geographic area than many of our neighbouring counties.

“Aside from these changes, we’re still working on what happens in the future and are continuing to work up plans to ensure we can offer a safe and resilient service going forward.”

The council says it will update its website as and when changes are made, so please keep checking www.leicestershire.gov.uk/waste