Residents in south Suffolk who have a brown garden waste bin will be charged almost £70 to use it from next year.

Babergh District Council's cabinet voted on proposals for fees and charges for 2025/26 during a meeting on Tuesday, November 5. 

The report before the councillors presented the proposed fees for next year and included a range of services, both governed by statute and discretionary, that are provided by the authority.

One of the proposed charges was a £4 increase of brown bin fees from £65 to £69.

Other increases include bulky item collections rising from the current £59.50 to £69.50 and a new build property set of bins increasing from £76.00 to £77.00

Some charges were set to remain the same in the plans including 12-month parking season tickets, which would stay at £250, and pavement licences renewals, which would continue to be £350.

Councillors in the cabinet debate had two options before them - to approve the proposed charges, including the new £69 brown bin fee, which was the option recommended to them, or to make no changes and leave the fees at their current price. 

During the meeting it was resolved that the proposed fees and charges for 2025/26 would be approved.

This means the cost of the brown garden waste bin will increase next year from £65 to £69. 

The reason for the decision was described as: "To ensure that Babergh District Council achieves sufficient income and thereby reduces the subsidy on non-essential services which may compromise the council’s ability to fund statutory services." 

The fees and charges will be built into the budget for the next year.