The site for the proposed Bath Recycling Centre is an existing Bath & North East Somerset Council depot on the Locksbrook Road Trading Estate to the west of the city centre. The northern boundary of the site is formed by Locksbrook Road itself with a car dealership directly opposite, while to the south lies the Bristol and Bath Railway Path with the River Avon beyond.
The site is currently used as a depot by Bath & North East Somerset Council for its Street Cleansing operations. Vehicles and staff are located at this site, along with bays for the street cleaning waste, whilst another part of the site is also used by a local car dealership for vehicle storage.
The council is proposing a new central recycling facility to serve residents of Bath to replace the existing facility at Midland Road in the Bath Riverside area, which has planning permission for housing development. With the declaration of the climate emergency the council developed a new consolidated Keynsham Recycling Hub. Alongside the new Keynsham Recycling Hub, the council is proposing a new central recycling facility to serve residents of the city, particularly those in central and eastern Bath for whom Keynsham may not be readily accessible. An exhaustive site search was undertaken across Bath and Locksbrook Road was found to be the most suitable. The recycling facility at Midland Road was identified for redevelopment as part of the Bath Western Riverside Area plan adopted in 2008 and has planning permission for redevelopment.
The council is committed to providing continued household recycling facilities for city residents, to complement the new facility at the Keynsham Recycling Hub, and to serve residents of the city, particularly those in central and eastern Bath for whom Keynsham or Welton Recycling Centre may not be readily accessible.
The Council’s Waste Service Team has undertaken extensive searches for feasible and available sites for a recycling centre in Bath, over a number of years with assistance from external consultants, assessing over 50 sites of various sizes within and around Bath. All site searches set the assessment stages, criteria and scoring matrix at the start. For example, these are the high-level criteria (with sub-categories) used in the last major site review in 2021:
- Planning constraint and practicality considerations
- Access, transport and air quality considerations
- Environmental considerations
- Social considerations
Finding a suitable site in Bath is challenging given the peripheral Green Belt constraint around the city and a lack of suitable and available sites. Two formal site searches were undertaken in 2019 and 2021. Most of the sites identified were in third party ownership which would have either required a compulsory purchase or negotiation linked to open market values: NB. sites that come on the open market have to compete with other higher value uses. Further appraisal work was carried out on the highest-ranking sites but unfortunately no site was deemed either technically and/or financially suitable.
In 2022/23 the Council reviewed all surplus and under-utilised sites in Bath under Council ownership including those that had been previously evaluated whether occupied or leased to see whether, at this point, any location could be delivered from a technical and financial point of view. This process identified the availability of the subject site at Locksbrook Road and changing circumstances also enabled the relocation of the Cleansing Team operation to a nearby site. Further analysis confirmed that the Locksbrook Road site now met deliverability criteria. Council members then approved a detailed feasibility study which then led to a process of pre-application and public engagement.
The existing service users are the council's Street Cleansing team and they will be moving to an alternative nearby site on Locksbrook Road which previously housed the fleet works and MOT test centre. This site will house the vehicles and staff welfare facilities only, as street sweepings and litter will continue to be handled at the new recycling centre site as before.
The new recycling centre will accept the most commonly disposed of items:
- Residual household waste
- Cardboard (including items too large for kerbside collection)
- Soft furnishings
- Bulky Waste
- Garden Waste
- Wood
- Scrap metal and large electrical items such as washing machines and other white goods, except fridges, freezers, TVs and computer monitors
- Dry recyclables (plastic, paper, cans, glass etc)
The amount of materials which can be accepted at the new recycling centre is restricted to the number of skips and bring bank containers that can be fitted into the site. But there are many items which can be collected from home by weekly recycling collections such as small electricals and car batteries and for more information on kerbside collections visit https://beta.bathnes.gov.uk/green-recycling-box. And for bulky items there is a collection service available https://beta.bathnes.gov.uk/order-large-waste-item-collection.
The new recycling centre will have parking for 16 cars, including dedicated disabled parking. There will also be dedicated cycle and pedestrian accesses, from Locksbrook Road and from the Bristol and Bath Railway Path, with dedicated cycle stands for unloading.
Items that are not accepted at Bath Recycling Centre can be taken to Keynsham Recycling Hub or to Midsomer Norton Recycling Centre. Specifically:
- DIY (including hardcore and rubble, soil and plasterboard)
- Hazardous waste (including asbestos, chemicals, gloss and solvent based paints)
- Tyres
- Cooking oil
- Fire extinguishers
- Fridges, freezers, TVs, computer monitors
- Gas bottles
- Low energy lightbulbs & tubes
The amount of materials which can be accepted at the new Bath Recycling Centre is restricted to the number of skips and bring bank containers that can be fitted into the site. As a reminder there are many items which can be collected from home by weekly recycling collections such as small electricals and car batteries https://beta.bathnes.gov.uk/green-recycling-box. And for bulky items there is a collection service available https://beta.bathnes.gov.uk/order-large-waste-item-collection.
Most residents can recycle the following from their regular kerbside collection. Check the website for restrictions / changes.
What can go in your green box
https://beta.bathnes.gov.uk/green-recycling-box
What can go in your blue bag
https://beta.bathnes.gov.uk/blue-recycling-bag
What can go in your food waste bin
https://beta.bathnes.gov.uk/food-waste
The site will be accessed via dedicated access points from Locksbrook Road. Separate public and operational access points will be provided, improving efficiency and safety when the centre is in operation. In addition to these vehicular accesses, there will also be a dedicated pedestrian access point from Locksbrook Road, as well as pedestrian/cycle access from the Bristol and Bath Railway Path.
The recycling centre will operate a pre-booking system. This will ensure that only a defined number of vehicles will be able to access the centre at any given time, which will keep vehicles moving freely in and out of the site and prevent queuing. The booking system will be monitored to ensure that it is working well and updated if necessary. The number of drop off parking bays and waiting bays is greater than at Midland Road which will also ensure traffic does not build up in and around the site. Separate public and operational vehicle access points will ensure that operational vehicles will no longer block traffic to the site as sometimes occurred at Midland Road. Traffic surveys have been undertaken at the key junctions in the local area with the operation of these junctions being assessed for the existing and proposed traffic flow conditions – see the Transport Assessment submitted with the planning application. The results confirm that there will be little traffic impact and that the assessed junctions will continue to operate broadly as at present.
The scheme will create an additional public vehicle access and therefore this will remove some parking spaces along the roadway outside the site. The scheme will have to apply for a TRO (legal process) to facilitate this.
A local car dealership currently stores cars on part of the site under a lease agreement. The landowner, Bath & North East Somerset Council has advised the dealership of the emerging plans to provide plenty of time for them to explore alternative arrangements for when they need to vacate the site for the development of the recycling centre to commence.
The site for the proposed recycling centre occupies a highly sustainable location and will be readily accessible by active travel means. Dedicated cycle and pedestrian access points are proposed from both Locksbrook Road on the northern side of the site, and the Bristol and Bath Railway Path on the southern boundary. There will also be dedicated cycle stands within the site for unloading.
The recycling containers will be accessed by a gantry arrangement with steps and a ramped access route from where items can be placed in the containers. The incorporation of ramped access into the design is intended to ease access to the containers for those with mobility challenges, while additional support will be provided by site staff to customers who have heavy items.
The new recycling centre will have parking for 16 cars, including dedicated disabled parking located close to the bottom of the ramp.
Our staff receive training on how to work with disabled people and understand not all disabilities are visible. There will be staff available to help and support disabled customers when requested or where its appropriate to do so. The disabled parking bay is located at the bottom of the ramp access to the gantry. Our staff can help unloading and carrying items up to the skips or to assist customers wherever necessary.
Meeting the aims of the council’s Climate and Ecological Emergency policies is at the forefront of the proposed new recycling centre.
The application includes an Ecology Assessment and Biodiversity Net Gain metric which describes how the site will deliver in excess of the national requirements with native planting on site. The scheme is also being designed to avoid impacts onto the adjacent river through careful location of lighting to avoid light spill onto the river and ensure there is no impact on bats for example.
Active travel will be promoted, with easy access for cycles both from the Bristol and Bath Railway Path along the riverside, with cycle stands for unloading provided within the site. There will also be a dedicated pedestrian access from Locksbrook Road.
There is very little vegetation within the site at present but where possible this will remain unaffected. We have specialist ecology and environmental consultants working with us to draw up plans as to how biodiversity and vegetation can be provided or enhanced.
Ecology surveys have been undertaken at the site. Whilst the site itself is of low ecological value, it is in close proximity to the River Avon Site of Nature Conservation Importance (SNCI), which is an important wildlife corridor, in particular for commuting and foraging bats.
The scheme is being designed to avoid impacts onto the adjacent river through careful location of lighting to avoid light spill onto the river and ensure there is no impacts on bats and other wildlife.
The scheme will also include areas of native planting which will deliver an overall net gain for biodiversity at the site.
The layout of the centre is being designed with careful consideration of the site’s proximity to the River Avon. The centre will primarily be handling waste in collection containers. The planning application will need to demonstrate all appropriate measures are in place to deal with the risks posed by future flood events and we are working with consultants to ensure the Environment Agency and Local Flood Authority requirements are met. The Environment Agency permit requires the production of a flood evacuation plan for the new scheme (one already exists for the existing Cleansing operations on site). The recycling centre scheme has been designed with no permanent structures to the east of the site, rather metal gantries and movable collection containers. In the event of a flood event warning it is envisaged that the site will be closed to the public and all containers will be removed to the new state-of-the-art central recycling hub at Keynsham Recycling Centre.
There will be no adverse impact on the Bristol and Bath Railway Path. A dedicated access into the centre will be provided for pedestrian and cycles from the Path. Locksbrook Road itself will also be unaffected as a cycle and pedestrian route.
The proposed sustainable travel route (Policy ST2) to the north of the site and across the Locksbrook Railway Bridge is being retained and will be unaffected by the proposals.
To monitor the concentrations of nitrogen dioxide, diffusion tubes are currently sited at several locations along Upper Bristol Road and one location on Newbridge Road, these can be viewed at: https://beta.bathnes.gov.uk/nitrogen-dioxide-monitoring-data. Since monitoring began at these locations in 2019, the sites have shown continual decreases with concentrations for 2023 lower than the annual average objective of 40 µg/m3. These sites remain in place into 2024.
An Air Quality Assessment has been carried out for the planning application submission which can be viewed here.
- Air Quality & Odour Assessment
- Lighting Assessment
- Noise Assessment
The noise assessment has acknowledged that noise will increase from the site but that this will be during the working day when ambient noise levels are already higher. It has also identified a number of measures which can be taken such as noise barriers and using skips with plastic wheels.
The Air Quality and Odour Assessment Report states the impact of traffic from the site on pollution levels will be ‘negligible’ and the impact of odour will be ‘insignificant’ and overall ‘that air quality and odour does not pose a constraint to the proposed development, either during construction or once operational’.
Reports of smells at the existing facility at Midland Road are due to waste processing activities there and storage of refuse vehicles. Neither of these things will take place at the new Bath Recycling Centre. There will be no waste processing, nor any dedicated food waste collection facility and no refuse trucks will be stored at Locksbrook Road. However, in response to concerns raised, skip covers can be used to reduce both odours and the risk of vermin.
Subject to the timeliness and outcomes of the planning process and other key project activities, we envisage an indicative opening date in late 2025.
We recognise the importance of maintaining household recycling provision for city residents and will be keeping the Midland Road recycling centre open until its replacement is operational.
You can view our responses to key themes arising from public engagement and follow a link to the planning application documents on the planning portal, including the Council’s statutory consultation on the planning application, here.
The council thinks this is a viable proposal and, in the unlikely event planning permission is not granted, the council would need to review and consider its next steps very carefully as options are very limited. Full site searches have been professionally undertaken and reviewed a number of times and none, other than Locksbrook Road, have been deemed suitable for a household recycling centre in Bath.
FAQs about the Midland Road Housing Scheme
The site which was the Waste Depot and recycling centre at Midland Road received full planning approval in 2020 for new affordable and market homes. Once an alternative recycling site has been confirmed, we will start on the first phase of affordable homes for social rent with the remaining affordable and market homes starting once the site has been fully vacated.
The site was allocated in the Local Plan for re-development in 2007 by the Bath and North East Somerset Local Plan. It forms part of Bath Western Riverside regeneration scheme.
The council owns the site and it will be developed by Aequus who are a council owned property company which was set up to develop and deliver homes for Bath & North East Somerset Council. The Aequus Group is 100% owned by B&NES and was established in 2016. Profit from schemes comes back to the council as a return to be utilised to support council services (it’s not ring fenced for housing). The current revenue financial return requirement to the shareholder (B&NES) is £1M per annum.
Aequus deliver housing and wider regeneration projects in areas where there is a need which has not been met by the market. By doing so, they help to address local housing pressures.
The site has full planning permission for a mix of 1, 2 and 3 bed homes for market sale and affordable housing. Full details of the scheme including the approved plans can be found here 19/05471/ERES. The site is proposing 25% of the homes will be affordable housing, 39 homes for social rent with the lowest rents and 5 homes for shared ownership where you buy an initial share and pay rent on the rest. These homes will be owned by the Council.
No, the council wants to control the housing delivery to make sure it creates high quality sustainable homes and includes affordable housing.
The site on the Locksbrook Road is in the Flood zone 3 and is not suitable for residential development.
The council works in partnership with Homes England and the DLUHC which provide funding support. The government allocates housing grant to enable brownfield land to come forward for housing development through a range of funding programmes and supports the delivery of more affordable homes through the Homes England Affordable Housing Programme.
Once an alternative recycling site has been confirmed, we will start building the first 39 affordable homes for social rent with construction of the remaining affordable and market homes starting once the remainder of the site has been fully vacated.