Council seeking new organisation to run re-use shop

Bridgend County Borough Council and its waste partners Kier are seeking a new organisation to run the re-use shop at the Maesteg Household Waste Recycling Centre.

The Siding, which was formerly run by Wastesavers, is temporarily closed after the social enterprise announced that it can no longer run it.

It says the impact of the coronavirus pandemic among other mitigating factors means it is unable to be involved in the running of the store, which sells unwanted household items that are in good condition.

Alun Harries, Charity Manager at Wastesavers, said: “This has been a hard decision to reach but the impact of Covid-19 combined with a number of other factors means that Wastesavers will no longer be involved in the running of the shop.

“We would like to thank the community of Maesteg for support and enthusiasm they showed for The Siding. We would also like to thank the support and commitment to The Siding from our partners Bridgend County Borough Council and Kier. We are confident The Siding will be re-opened at a future date and wish it every success.”

Community recycling centres are open from 8.30am until 7pm Monday to Friday and 8.30am until 5pm Saturday and Sunday.

Safety measures are in place and all rules on social distancing should be observed. There are likely to be queues due to limits on the number of people being allowed in at any one time so residents are kindly asked to be patient.

Meanwhile, work is progressing at Bridgend County Borough Council’s new community recycling centre at Village Farm Industrial Estate in Pyle.

The centre, which is expected to open in the summer, will have more vehicle capacity and bypass lanes to allow better movement on site. A split-level system will be in place in the yard with ramps up to the higher-sided skips and a canopy to protect from the elements.