Former mayor calling for Cheltenham tip to reopen
A former Cheltenham mayor has called on the county council to buy and reopen Cheltenham's Swindon Road tip
A former Cheltenham mayor is calling on the new Liberal Democrat leadership at Shire Hall to take over and reopen the Swindon Road tip.
Lib Dem-run Cheltenham Borough Council closed the household recycling centre temporarily on January 10 and hoped that Gloucestershire County Council would buy it.
Borough chiefs say the site needs a £1m investment to bring the tip inline with new environmental regulations.
The then Conservative leaders at Shire Hall rejected that proposal and said there is enough capacity at nearby recycling sites such as Wingmoor Farm in Bishop’s Cleeve.
More than 1,400 people signed a petition by the town’s Lib Dem MP Max Wilkinson which called on both authorities to save the site.
And now former Cheltenham mayor Wendy Flynn is calling on the newly elected Lib Dem leaders at Shire Hall to commit to taking over the Swindon Road site.
She wants them to provide a reopening timeline before winter to avert a spike in flytipping.
The former Borough Councillor has written to the newly appointed cabinet member for waste reduction Martin Horwood (LD, Leckhampton and Warden Hill) asking him to take immediate action to reopen the household recycling centre
“The ongoing closure has created a perfect storm of fly-tipping, pollution, and social inequality, and with your party now in control of both Cheltenham Borough Council (CBC) and Gloucestershire County Council (GCC), the time for excuses is over,” she said in a letter to the former MP.
“Last month, I helped a Cheltenham resident dispose of their household waste. What should have been a 15-minute, three-mile trip to Swindon Road turned into a 40-minute, 14-mile round trip to Wingmoor Farm.
“For those without cars—or those relying on friends, family, or volunteers for help—this is more than an inconvenience.
“It is a financial burden, a deterrent to recycling and an environmental failure.”
She said in areas like Hesters Way the consequences are visible with rubbish piling up in gardens, drives, and alleyways, a decline in neighbourhood pride as fly-tipping spreads and increased pressure on charities and volunteers who help vulnerable residents.
“You are now in a unique position to resolve this crisis. Cheltenham Borough Council closed the household recycling centre in January and asked GCC to take it over.
“The Conservatives refused, despite your colleague, Cllr Izaac Tailford, urging reconsideration. Now, with the Lib Dems leading GCC, and you—a former CBC cabinet member—overseeing waste, there are no political barriers left.
“Your own MP, Max Wilkinson, publicly called for this facility to be saved. The question is simple: Will your administration act where the Conservatives failed?
“This is not about party politics—it is about basic services for Cheltenham residents. The Lib Dems now control both councils. Will you clean up this mess?”
Cllr Horwood said he regretted the closure of the Swindon Road site but has yet to meet with council chiefs to discuss reviewing recycling facilities and discussing possible future plans.
“The new Lib Dem team at Shire Hall is deeply committed to encouraging re-use, reducing waste and increasing recycling,” he said.
“I’m sure there are many ways we can make Gloucestershire even greener, not least by listening to and working even more closely with our borough, city and district council colleagues.
“I haven’t yet had the chance to meet with senior county staff to take a fresh look at all the recycling facilities we run across the county and what future plans we can start to make. This will take time.
“Like many people in Cheltenham, I obviously regretted the closure of the Swindon Road site even though 90 per cent of recycling in Cheltenham is now successfully collected kerbside and most of the rest is taken to smaller local sites.
“The £1m plus bill to meet new Environment Agency standards and the ongoing cost of hundreds of thousands of pounds a year would be a huge amount of local taxpayers’ money whether paid for through the County or the Borough Council so we need to tread carefully.
“I want to discuss future recycling plans with county officers first but also meet the borough council and Cheltenham’s MP Max Wilkinson who I know was equally concerned about the closure of Swindon Road.
“And of course I want to meet with colleagues in Gloucester City and all the other Gloucestershire districts too to discuss future plans to reduce waste even further all over the county.”