Hampshire’s Household Waste Recycling Centres will remain open as the country goes into a second lockdown to help stop the spread of Coronavirus.
Councillor Rob Humby, Executive Member for Economy, Transport and Environment at Hampshire County Council, said: “I’m really pleased we’ve got absolute clarity from the Government and for this lockdown, the national guidance defines waste services as essential. It’s also good news that the Government has said that construction is not expected to close operations down.
“We’ve put in place a booking system at the HWRCs which has been operating well for some time now, and social distancing measures to ensure each of our sites is able to operate in a COVID safe way, so I am confident we will be able to continue offering this service for Hampshire residents as the country enters into the next lockdown period.”
Booking slots are available seven days in advance at each of Hampshire’s 24 HWRCs, and can be made online at www.hants.gov.uk/wasteandrecycling/recyclingcentres/book-appointment or, for those without internet access, by phone on 023 8017 9949, between Monday and Friday 9am to 5:30pm.
Visiting a Hampshire Household Waste Recycling Centre:
There is no need to bring confirmation of the booking to the site, the site will have information on confirmed bookings;
Site staff will check registration plates upon arrival – people will need to arrive in the vehicle specified in the booking;
Anyone turning up without a confirmed booking will not be allowed entry to the site;
People wishing to cancel or amend a booking can do so via the link received on the confirmation email. This link enables residents to either cancel a booking or reschedule it to another available date and time.
As per government guidelines, residents in the specified vulnerable category (those who are clinically extremely vulnerable, people over 70 and pregnant women) are strongly advised not to visit a site;
Specific parking arrangements are in place with site staff guiding vehicles, from a safe distance, into spaces
As far as possible, only one person per household should leave their vehicle during their visit to the HWRC.
Due to social distancing measures, site staff will be unable to provide any assistance with unloading material or carrying material. Residents are asked to bring only the amount of waste they can comfortably carry and empty into containers
Everyone must observe social distancing and keep at least a two-metre distance from others at all times.
Most waste materials will be accepted.
Reuse sales areas will unfortunately have to be closed, in line with Government restrictions on non-essential shops. Where possible, please continue to store items of furniture which could be reused, donate to local furniture charities, or use online platforms (e.g. Freegle / Facebay / Gumtree). Please see the Smart Living website for more information on furniture reuse.