City of York Council’s Executive will be asked to approve plans for York to become the first ‘Good Business Charter’ city in the UK later this month (24 June).

The proposals form part of the council’s wider work with the business community, supporting small and micro businesses, and promoting the authority’s unique approach to economic development – ‘the York way’.

The Good Business Charter is an initiative of the charity Good Business Foundation, and aims to encourage businesses to adopt a holistic approach to their social, environmental and economic impacts.

Organisations signing up to the Charter agree to ten key commitments:

1. Real Living Wage
2. Fairer Hours and Contracts
3. Employee Well-being
4. Employee representation
5. Diversity and inclusion
6. Environmental responsibility
7. Pay fair tax
8. Commitment to customers
9. Ethical sourcing
10. Fair payment to suppliers

All are approached from an ethical stand point, with the businesses signing up to the charter expected to meet some minimum standards (for example on paying the real living wage, committing to reducing environmental impact, not engaging in tax avoidance, signing up to the Prompt Payment Code).

Working with the Foundation, the council is proposing to make York the first Good Business Charter city. This would involve the council signing up to the Charter, together with local partners. The University of York and Aviva are already accredited members. The Federation of Small Businesses is promoting the Charter, as are TUC, CBI and other business networks.

By becoming a signatory on the Charter, it’s hoped that it will help York to promote responsible business practices and provide a practical framework which enables York to Build Back Better.

Cllr Keith Aspden, Leader of City of York Council, said:

Supporting small and medium sized businesses has been a key focus of the council throughout the covid pandemic.

“As we continue to work together to support the city’s recovery, it’s important that we take the lead to continue to encourage businesses to adopt a holistic approach to their social, environmental and economic impacts.

“Working together, as the first Good Business Charter city, will help us to create a better, fairer and more sustainable future for the city.”

If proposals to sign the Charter are agreed, the council is proposing to include it as part of its emerging Economic Strategy and ten year plan, and there are opportunities to promote membership through the Business Leaders Group and the City Partnership Group.

The Council has abandoned its proposal to empty green bins, and collect recycling, every 3 weeks.

The Councils waste collection service has been heavily criticised over the last few weeks with a lack of HGV drivers blamed for erratic, and sometimes non existent, collections.

The decision on less frequent collections comes in the wake of a survey of residents views and priorities.

The Council failed to ask residents whether they favoured the 3 weekly plan but the majority of respondents said that they were happy with the current arrangements.

Several said that they would prefer, instead of boxes, to have another wheeled bin in which to store glass, metals plastic. This hasn’t been taken up by the Council but they do say that recyclables (not paper) can now be mixed in the two baskets already provided for many residents.

The Councils Executive are now being asked to agree to proposals for the procurement of a new low emission fleet of recycling vehicles. They will also consider a proposal to start garden waste collections a month earlier. They currently start in April to the end of November, but under new proposals would start in March (beginning from March 2022).

The Executive will also consider “the cleaner and safer option of introducing of wheeled bins or other arrangements to around 6,200 properties (which currently use black bags for non –recyclable waste), predominantly in the Micklegate, Guildhall, Clifton, Holgate and Heworth wards.  This will be taken to a future decision session of the Executive Member for Environment and Climate Change”.

“Changes planned include extending garden waste collections, so we can collect green bins earlier, introducing bags to bins to 6,200 properties, allowing residents to mix glass, cans and plastics in boxes to provide more flexibility, and introducing new and more efficient waste vehicles”.  

Following Executive approval, residents will be able to recycle all materials together apart from paper and cardboard. Meaning, glass, cans and plastics can be placed in the same box (2 boxes per household). This is because the council had to adapt during the Covid pandemic and worked with its waste contractor at the facility to separate plastic, tins and glass. This emerged as a more efficient way of collecting recycling. It has not changed the way the materials collected are recycled and has been a useful pilot. 

The Executive are being asked to consider that the consultation responses from residents across the city should inform the council’s response to the Government’s consultation.  If approved, further options will be considered at a later decision session. 

As the council’s 6-week consultation (30 March to 11 May) was coming to a close, the Government launched a national consultation on the ‘Consistency in Household and Business Recycling in England’, looking at wide ranging and ambitious changes to the future of recycling in the UK.

In addition to this, further details on the Environment Bill, which makes clear the Government’s intentions to potentially pay councils as part of mandatory weekly food collection, as well as introduce other significant changes to waste collection from 2024 to 2025, were released on 12 May.

Until the Environment Bill is passed and further details emerge from the national recycling consultation, there will remain a significant amount of uncertainty over what councils will need to do and by when.

A report will be taken to the Executive on 24 June at 5.30pm, the report can be read online ahead of the meeting, which will be livestreamed and can be watched online live, or afterwards.