Countrystyle Recycling are working hard to catch up on a total of 30,000 outstanding bins remaining across Bexley after taking over the contract from Serco last week.

Bin collections have been a long-running debacle in Bexley for several months now, with the borough infamously going over six weeks without some collections taking place due to strike action.

Union Unite and contractors Serco had a drawn-out dispute over victimisation complaints and some of the lowest pay in the capital, with 140 workers walking out on July 12 and not returning the end of August.

Uncollected bins were reported as "piling up" across the borough, causing local outrage as the state of Bexley's streets worsened to the point of being a health hazard.

The dispute finally ended at the end of August, but Bexley Council had already opted to dump Serco and awarded its next 10-year contract to Countrystyle.

News Shopper: Bins in Bexley went uncollected for well over a month this summerBins in Bexley went uncollected for well over a month this summer

Taking over from Serco at the start of this month, Countrystyle will collect general, recycling and food waste from around 99,170 properties, and deliver the material either directly to Cory Riverside’s Belvedere Energy from Waste plant or to the Council’s Thames Road waste transfer station, which is already operated by Countrystyle.

The council say the agreement will also "substantially increase the investment made in these key services."

However, the strike action coupled with staff shortages and Covid pressures means a huge backlog of uncollected bins remains.

Bexley Council revealed that there were 30,000 outstanding bins left over, but as of Friday last week this had been reduced down to 13,000.

Workers have also been working on Saturdays to catch up with collections.