Green waste collections are changing after Christmas – and if you want the Council to keep collecting your green waste after then, you will have to pay.

As usual, collections will end next month for the winter. Your final free collection will be in the last two weeks of November, the precise date depending on your normal collection day.

When the service starts again at the end of February, it will be a chargeable service, which you will have to opt into. To do this you have to pay the Council £30 (if you pay before 15th November) or £35 (if you pay on the 16th November or later). For this you will receive a green wheelie bin which will be emptied fortnightly. The wheelie bin has a capacity of 240 litres, which the Council says is the equivalent of three of the old sacks. You can have as many wheelie bins as you want but you have to pay £30/£35 for each.

If your home is what the Council describes as ‘completely unsuitable’ for a wheelie bin, you will receive 60 marked sacks for green waste in return for your £30/£35. These will be collected fortnightly when the green wheelie bins are emptied.

If you move house, the bin stays at your old home and you will have to pay for a new one – if you are moving to another home in Birmingham and need one.

If you want more information you can get it at www.birmingham.gov.uk/greenrecycling