Mansfield dad's anger as binmen refuse to empty family's wheelie bin

Mr Willows green bin, which binmen refused to collect as the lid was open.

Jody Willows, who lives in the Oak Tree area with his wife and two children, now has to wait two weeks until the next collection date.

Mr Willows said he is worried about where he will dispose of his waste, as his youngest child is still in nappies.

He said: "My green bin wasn't taken because the lid was slightly open.

"When I spoke to the council , they told me the rule to not take open bins has been in place for years, but I've never heard of it or seen it enforced.

"I can see their point, but I should have been notified that this rule was in place beforehand."

The council offered to take Mr Willows bin before the next collection at a cost of Â£10.

However, Mr Willows says that they will still not take the bin if the lid is slightly open, and his families refuse is building up.

He added: "Even if I pay the Â£10, my bin might not get emptied for three days, and with me, my wife, a twelve year old and a ten week old baby, the bin gets full very quickly.

"If I pay the Â£10, my bin will still be full, and I'll have three more days of rubbish on top."

Mr Willows does not have access to transport to take the rubbish to the tip, and does not want to have to put household rubbish in a friend's car.

He is worried about rats and vermin if he doesn't find a way to dispose of the rubbish.

"There could be an epidemic of rats, the bin could attract all sorts."

Mr Willows also feels that Mansfield District Council has not been helpful in resolving his issue.

He added: "If they'd sent a letter out to notify people their bin will not be taken if the lid is slightly open, this could have been avoided.

"How do they know a lid hasn't just blown open in the wind?

"The bins have been made smaller, and we can't fit as much rubbish in there.

"I have no idea what I'm going to do."

Mike Robinson, director of economic growth at Mansfield District Council, said:

“Mansfield District Council, like many councils across the country, has a standard policy of only emptying bins that have closed lids.

"This applies to all bins - household waste, recycling and garden waste.

"This is to minimise waste and encourage more use of recycling bins to help increase recycling rates in Mansfield.

"Mansfield already has a low recycling rate compared to other councils in Nottinghamshire and we need to recycle more to reach our target of recycling 50% of our waste by 2020.

"If everybody put extra waste in their bin, lorries would become full more quickly and have to be emptied more frequently meaning crews would be unable to empty all bins on their round.

"Bin lids should also be fully closed to ensure the safety of the public and our crews, and to ensure that wheeled bins and lids are not damaged during the collection and lifting process.

"In addition, closed lids help to keep our streets tidy by preventing littering, deter flies (and therefore maggots) and vermin, and avoid rainwater entering the bin.

"Once your bin is full, you should store any excess waste until your next collection day or take it to one of Nottinghamshire County Council’s waste recycling centres.

"Larger 360 litre blue recycling bins may be available to help you to recycle more, subject to a waste audit.

"You can call our Contact Centre on 01623 463463 or email us at [email protected] to request a larger blue bin.”