Wokingham Residents Praise Smallmead and Longshot Lane Recycling Centres

Residents from Bracknell, Reading and Wokingham who use Smallmead and Longshot Lane Household Recycling Centres have once again given them both a comprehensive seal of approval.

Customer satisfaction surveys are carried out every year at both sites so re3 can act on any improvements identified by users. This year’s survey involved around 1,300 visitors to each site being asked a series of questions to gauge their opinion of the highly rated recycling centres.

99% of people surveyed rated Longshot Lane at good or very good, with a perfect 100% rating for cleanliness at the Bracknell-based site. Staff helpfulness at Longshot Lane was rated good or very good by 98% of people asked, and 86% of people rated the amount of time queuing as good or very good.

Over at the Smallmead Household Waste Recycling Centre in Reading, figures were similarly impressive. 98% of people rated Smallmead as a good or very good site with 94% placing cleanliness in the same category.

Staff helpfulness was described as good or very good by 93% of residents who visited Smallmead with 91% of people categorising queuing times at the Reading site as good or very good.

The re3 project was set up nine years ago between Bracknell Forest, Reading and Wokingham borough councils and in 2006 they signed a Private Finance Initiative contract with Waste Recycling Group (WRG) to develop and manage waste solutions over the next 25 years.

Cllr Dorothy Hayes, Chairman of re3, Executive Member for Environment at Bracknell Forest Council, said: “We are absolutely delighted that residents quizzed about the facilities at Longshot Lane have given them the thumbs up. The 100 per cent rating for cleanliness is testament to the hard work that all employees carry out in order to provide an excellent customer experience for those using the facilities.”

Cllr Paul Gittings, Lead Councillor for Environment and Climate Change at Reading Borough Council, said: “I am very pleased to see the continuing high satisfaction rating for the Smallmead Household Recycling Centre, which is a testament to the hard work of the staff. The figures for Longshot Lane are also particularly impressive and underline the value the RE3 partnership has brought to all three councils in this vital area for residents.”

Cllr Gary Cowan, Executive Member for Environment at Wokingham Borough Council, said: “The improvements at both waste recycling centres have made a real difference and the results of this survey match the feedback we’ve had from Wokingham Borough residents. Using the centres also has the additional benefit of some unwanted goods having a future life through our partnership with Sue Ryder.

“It is now a much easier process to take your unwanted items to the tip for recycling or disposal. This is particularly important at a time when we are doing all we can to encourage our residents to recycle as much as possible and avoid the environmental and financial implications of putting rubbish into landfill.”

Mark Tipton, General Manager of re3, added: “This result really does acknowledge the very hard work that all members of the Smallmead and Longshot Lane teams carry out in order to provide an excellent customer experience for those using the facilities. WRG is proud to be part of a partnership whose facilities are so well regarded and which show such good results in providing sustainable waste and resource management for the people of Reading, Bracknell Forest and Wokingham.”

Waste Recycling Group Limited
Ground Floor West
900 Pavilion Drive
Northampton Business Park
Northampton
NN4 7RG
UK