Council to take charge of collection after more than 20 years
Bridgend County Borough Council is preparing to run its own waste and recycling service from July 2027, ending a contract that has seen the work outsourced to the private sector for more than two decades. Councillors were updated this week on preparations for the change and on the financial and operational issues that will need to be managed during the transition.
The council’s medium term financial strategy records that it expects to spend around £11 million on collection and disposal of household waste in 2026–27. The decision to return the service to council control was taken in November 2024, with leaders saying bringing the contract in-house will provide “more hands-on monitoring” and greater “sustainable flexibility”.
Preparation work and governance
Officers say planning has been under way behind the scenes since the November decision. A waste project board has been established to provide senior oversight and management support, while additional staff have been recruited to the procurement team to help deliver the change.
- New vehicles: several new waste collection vehicles have already been delivered to the council, with further arrivals expected over the coming months.
- Suppliers: around 130 suppliers currently support the collection service, providing everything from IT systems and plant maintenance to bins and containers.
- Risk management: the council is examining how to manage supplier changes and the legal risks tied to contract awards during transition.
“A significant part of work undertaken to date is around key suppliers needed to enable the running of the service. Through transition preparation works, it is noted that there are currently around 130 suppliers engaged to support the waste collection service.”
Supplier and procurement risks
Council papers warn that moving away from the current contractor will involve a substantial change in suppliers. If the authority were to award new contracts directly to existing suppliers without a competitive process, that could leave it exposed to legal challenges from companies not given an opportunity to bid.
To reduce that risk, officers propose using short-term contract awards where necessary, keeping individual contract values below statutory thresholds that trigger full competitive tendering. The papers say this approach would be intended to ensure service continuity while minimising legal exposure.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Transition date | July 2027 |
| Projected 2026–27 waste budget | £11 million |
| Current supplier count | ~130 |
Local implications and next steps
For households across Bridgend, the move may be largely invisible if the council succeeds in maintaining existing collection routines and staff. However, the council will need to manage a complex set of contracts and logistics during handover to avoid service disruption.
The council report makes clear that significant procurement work has already been carried out but that further decisions will be required to secure short-term supply arrangements and longer-term contracts. Members were told that some new vehicles have already arrived, signalling tangible investment ahead of the planned takeover.
Bringing the service in-house is presented by the authority as a way of giving elected members and senior officers greater control over how waste services are delivered and how budgets are spent. The coming months will test whether the council can marry that ambition with sound procurement practice and uninterrupted collections for residents.
Further updates are expected as the council completes the transition planning and starts to put short-term supplier arrangements in place ahead of July 2027.
