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Wirral Council gives Biffa £350m bin collector contract. By Andrew Spence, Local Democracy Reporter A Biffa van (Image: Connect Group) A NEW multi-year contract that could be worth up to nearly £350m has secured the future of vital services across Wirral. Wirral Council has awarded a new contract bin collection and street cleansing services which could last until 2043. The contract has been awarded to Biffa Waste Services Ltd, on an initial eight year deal, with scope for the contract to be extended by a further eight years. Over 16 years, the deal would be worth £348.6m. The council provides refuse and recycling collections for approximately 153,000 households in the borough. A council report explains that since 2006, refuse collection and most street cleansing services in Wirral have been provided through a contract with Biffa. The current contract will end in August 2027. The awarding of the new contract was agreed by the council's policy and resources committee after the issue was referred from the the environment, climate emergency and transport committee last month following two years of scrutiny. The council received interest from four companies in the contract, Biffa and three others. The four were whittled down to a two-name shortlist of Biffa and another company. The report to the committee explains the council was then informed that the other company would be withdrawing from the procurement process, leaving just Biffa. In addition to the new contract being awarded to Biffa, the council committee agreed to authorise the council's director of operations to negotiate and finalise terms for the council to buy the Dock Road South depot off Biffa. Once the council owns the site, Biffa will continue to operate at the depot by way of lease. Read More: Discussing the contract during the committee meeting, Cllr Steve Foulkes said: "My belief is that what we've got on the table is excellent. One of the services every single individual receives and judges us on is the refuse contract." Cllr Jo Bird asked officers on what basis would the contract be reviewed after eight years, when the council would be set to decide whether to activate the option for a further eight years. Cllr Bird was told the performance and value for money of the service would be assessed. More Stories

Design Skills for Embedding Circularity: CIWM & URGE Collective prepare for design sprint. Circular Economy, Resource Management, Sustainability 2nd June 2026 CIWM (Chartered Institution of Wastes Management) Design Council, WRAP, and URGE Collective, have partnered with waste management company Biffa and retail business Decathlon for the next phases of the Design Skills for embedding circularity programme. The Design Skills for Embedding Circularity pilot programme is now gearing up for a design sprint that will focus on 'designing out waste'. An intensive 6-week deep dive, exploring challenges and barriers to circularity through both business, design and waste and resources lenses. The Sprint is part of an innovative pilot project funded by CIWM that links professional designers with resources and waste operators to embed designing out waste principles into everyday design practice. The design cohort have spent the last four months visiting industrial waste facilities guided by circular economy expert Sophie Thomas. They have observed technical processes and met waste resource experts across the country, including at Sherbourne Recycling's Super MRF, SWEEEP's waste electrical and electronic equipment recycling plant, DS Smith's largest UK recycled papermill, Enfinium's energy from waste plant, Biffa's Edmonton MRF, Enovert's landfill sites in Gloucestershire, and SUEZ's Renew Hub in Manchester. They have also visited Decathlon's London HQ, and Allermuir's furniture remanufacturing hub in Manchester to explore how circular business models are being realised. Each site visit and expert session revealed myth busting facts concerning how products are designed and manufactured for recovery, reuse or recycling and the barriers to circularity. These insights range from: the amount of lost material at the MRF stage from size or material complexity, coloured PET ruling out recycling, problematic waste arriving at MRFs including vapes, textiles, nappies, cookware, and the extremely limited intervention points for repair or reuse between user and industrial waste sorting. Dan Cooke, Director of Policy, Communications and External Affairs at CIWM, said that policy is moving in the right direction and will 'increasingly nudge' businesses towards circular models. "However, a vital element for progress is cross-sector collaboration and expertise - designers who understand what happens to a product at end of life, and resources and waste professionals who can influence design thinking upstream," Cooke continued. "These connections are important in helping to move the world beyond waste. In just a few weeks, this cohort is moving from waste facility floor to design studio, and knowledge is now being applied to live challenges from Biffa and Decathlon."

Council renews waste collection and street cleaning contract with Biffa. South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse District Councils this week announced they have awarded their joint Waste Collection and Street Cleansing contract to waste contractor, Biffa Waste Services, following a rigorous procurement process. The new contract will begin on 29 June 2026. The councils' existing shared contract with Biffa currently runs until June 2026 after it was extended by two years in 2024. The successful partnership has helped keep the two districts in the top 10 of the English recycling tables for over a decade. With the introduction of the new contract, the councils are not currently proposing any major changes in how household waste is collected, but following the publication of the Waste Resource and Street Cleansing Strategy Waste Resources and Street Cleansing Strategy they are encouraging people to maximise the value and lifespan they get from the things they buy. The councils are also preparing for law changes with the national 'Simpler Recycling' scheme that come into effect in 2027 - which will mean residents can recycle soft plastics. The main significant change will be a proposed move to a new council owned vehicle depot, alongside a new Dry Mixed Recycling transfer station contract. The councils' joint contract with Biffa has run for 16 years in South Oxfordshire and 15 years in Vale of White Horse. The councils' recent waste satisfaction survey has yielded encouraging results for its household waste collections, indicating a high level of resident approval with this side of the service. Eighty-one per cent of respondents expressed satisfaction, or high satisfaction, with the overall quality of the service provided. Cllr Sue Cooper - South Oxfordshire District Council Cabinet Member for Environment, said: "Its waste partnership has been successful over the last 16 years - and I'm proud of the fact it has played a big role in setting Henley Herald amongst the top recycling areas in the country, which is also thanks to the great effort made by its residents. I'd like to congratulate Biffa for coming out of the robust procurement process as the preferred contractor. "We clearly need to have an eye on the future reorganisation of councils when making contract decisions, but a contract of this magnitude couldn't be delayed so it has a range of flexible options built into it, to reflect the potential future needs of a new council structure, whatever that may look like." Steve Cole, Managing Director at Biffa Municipal, commented: "Biffa is very proud and honoured to continue its partnership with South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse District Councils, building on its shared commitment and successes in delivering reliable, sustainable, and innovative waste and street cleansing services. "We look forward to supporting the councils and their residents in preparation for changes in law over the next few years, working together to provide quality collection services and cleaner streets for residents and visitors alike." The new contract could run for a maximum period of 16 years (subject to agreed extension/s), with a minimum period of eight years and a break possible after four years to give maximum flexibility.