To agree the minutes of the meeting of the Committee held on 11 November 2024, as a correct record.

Resolved: that the Minutes of the Cleaner and Greener Advisory Committee held on the 11 November 2024, be approved and signed by the Chairman as a correct record.

Any interests not already registered.

There were none.

The Principal Infrastructure Delivery Officer confirmed the Member had been in contact with the Countryside Manager and the queries had been satisfied.

The Portfolio Holder gave an update on her portfolio. Over 48,000 households had received the reusable green recycling sacks by the end of December 2024. Crews were successfully collecting waste from around 50,000 households weekly and rounds were completed as normal with no delays. Crews had reported vehicles used to collect recycling were filling up quicker since the rollout of the new recycling bags. Use of the recycling bags would be reviewed after six months. Data from Kent County Council (KCC) would also have been received by this point and this would be incorporated into the review.

Good progress had been made at the Bradbourne Lakes development. The lead consultant and architect were being appointed from Land Use consultants. They had previously assisted with the development phase and had considerable experience with similar projects. Preparation work had begun for a National Lottery Submission in November. This included community engagement activities would take place in spring and summer. This first face to face event had been well received with 50 attendees. A ‘Name the Lake’ competition would also be taking place to engage local residents, schools and organisations in the process.

There were upcoming changes to the licensing rules imposed during Covid. Establishments that did not ordinarily have the condition to sell alcohol for consumption offsite would be required to apply to the Licensing team to vary their licence. Businesses that were impacted had been notified. The Statement of Licensing policy had recently been reviewed in line with the licensing Act 2023. Changes included actions that could be taken to prevent spiking of drinks as well as encouraging publication of the Ask Angela scheme.

In response to questions the Portfolio holder confirmed the additional recycling bags had been requested due to residents requiring additional space. The Chief Officer for Finance and Trading further explained that crews had undergone health and safety training for emptying the reusable bags. The Direct Services Manager further explained there had only been one request for a replacement of a damaged bag.

There were none.

The Chairman introduced the report and confirmed Active Travel was a key priority in the Council’s aim to reduce their climate impact.

The Principal Infrastructure Delivery Officer presented the report which provided an update on active travel opportunities. Central Government had launched a series of funding opportunities via Active Travel England. The Council had been successful in obtaining funds for a number of prioritised projects. Progress had been made on six Active Travel projects implementing walking, cycling and wheeling infrastructure across the district.

Stakeholder engagement for the third Local Cycling, Walking and Infrastructure Plan (LCWIP) in Edenbridge had taken place and 140 responses had been received. The feedback allowed Officers to identify potential barriers and opportunities to walking and cycling in Edenbridge. Once completed, the three largest towns would have full LCWIP coverage.

The Sevenoaks East to West route was under construction and would consist of fully segregated cycle lanes, priority crossings and lighter touch shared use paths along quieter residential roads. This route remained on track for completion in May 2025. The Sevenoaks to Otford route was the second most advanced route. Outline designs had been completed for the A225 to connect Otford Pond with the Bat and Ball junction. Stakeholder engagement from 2023 indicated there was significant public support for this route and further stakeholder engagement would take place this year. Officers were working to ensure the scheme would be ready for construction by the end of 2025. The LCWIP identified a route to join Swanley to Hextable which was an attractive walking route. It would connect Hextable to Swanley town centre passing through Swanley park and the avenue of limes. There was a stronger preference for walking over cycling but the Principal Infrastructure Delivery Officer confirmed there would be a provision for cycling.

In response to questions, the Principal Infrastructure Delivery Officer confirmed there was a focus on urban areas where there would be the biggest impact on behaviour change. Once the LCWIP for Edenbridge had been completed, investigations into other appropriate routes could begin.

The Chairman thanked the Officer for her report.

Resolved: That the report be noted.

The Head of Direct Services presented the report which highlighted the results of the survey and set out the recommendations following the first desktop review. He explained the reduction in the environmental impact of waste collection was only achievable by working together to make more sustainable choices. Operational changes were required to ensure the Strategy’s aims were deliverable and to avoid serious failures to residents. One of the biggest changes would be to expand the frontline waste system. A desktop review (along with two independent reports) found there was a requirement to change the waste collection service to increase recycling rates and to sustain operational delivery. The review also set out the necessary operation improvements to start to deliver on the domestic Waste and Recycling Strategy and to comply with upcoming legislative changes. Local Government Reorganisation would have a significant impact on the service and it was desirable to amend the service to align with neighbouring authorities.

The Communications and Consultation Manager explained the BIG Waste Conversation survey was designed in collaboration with members of the Committee. The consultation was run by Lake Market Research who were an independent, Kent based, research agency and a member of the Market Research Society.

A face-to-face version of the survey (that was representative of the District population as a whole), took place between 2 January and 5 February 2025 and 427 residents completed this survey.

3,853 residents took part in the online survey between 9 December 2024 and 3 February 2025.

Over 80% of respondents of both surveys highlighted the importance of improving the environmental impact of waste and recycling collection services. 86% of the representative survey and 77% of the online survey respondents believed the Council should reach the revised national recycling target. Over 80% of respondents supported the provision of services to reduce general waste.

Residents who took part in both surveys strongly supported kerbside glass collections and the provision of a wheelie bin for general waste. A smaller majority of respondents supported kerbside food waste collections. Views were spilt on the frequency of collections: 44% of representative survey respondents and 27% of the online survey respondents supported the idea of colleting waste one week and recycling the next.

Residents who use communal facilities supported the provision of additional recycling banks for clothing, textiles, food waste and small electrical items.

Since implementation of the reusable recycling bags, there was a noticeable increase in recycling across the district. Requests for additional recycling bags had been received and the majority of these were due to residents filling the bags provided. A small number of requests were due to defective bags. Although this was beneficial to meeting recycling targets, split-back vehicles had become overwhelmed.

In response to questions, Officers confirmed the phase two report would be presented at the summer Cleaner and Greener Advisory committee. There was ongoing analysis of the data collected from the survey and a cross department officer waste working group continued to review available waste disposal options. There were various  ...  view the full minutes text for item 37.

The work plan was noted with the following additions:

June 2025:

• Domestic Waste and Recycling Update including the Desktop Review Phase 2
• Domestic Waste and Recycling – Task and Finish Group Feedback
• Domestic Waste and Recycling – Recycling Bag Review
• Environmental Health Update

September 2025:

• Parking Review