Rotting Christmas turkeys and rancid chipolatas will sit in bins for almost three weeks as bin men and women take most of the week off.

Kirklees Council has opted not to collect bins for most households in the borough between December 24 and January 2.

For homes with a grey bin collection on December 23 it means their waste will not be collected until January 13 - a full 21 days after the previous collection.

A special December 29 collection will occur only for residents whose bin day would have fallen on Christmas Eve.

No collections for most households between December 24 and January 2
No collections for most households between December 24 and January 2

The policy is a change on previous festive periods which has seen bin dates adjusted but collections continued.

Kirklees’ move is a contrast to Calderdale Council which is collecting bins between December 26 and 31.

The three-week gap has been caused because the council has opted to stick with the existing rotation of grey and green bins.

After the Christmas week off, households will first have their green bins collected some time in the week commencing January 4.

Grey bin collections resume on the week commencing January 11.

The council has used its Twitter account to notify the public that fewer collections were happening but it confirmed no special letters or leaflets will be sent out.

The tweet suggests people take their extra rubbish to the tip as the household recycling sites will be open, except for December 25, 26 and January 1.

The change follows the council’s struggles with its new bin routes, which began in September.

The Examiner revealed last week that a staggering 31,662 bins were not collected in November amid “teething problems” with the new working patterns.

Bins unemptied on Barnsley Road, Flockton
Bins unemptied on Barnsley Road, Flockton

A Kirklees Council spokesperson, said: “As with previous years during the Christmas period, the council will not be running its normal waste collection service on the following days: Thursday, December 24, Monday, December 28, Tuesday December 29, Wednesday December 30, and Thursday December 31.

“However, if you would normally receive a collection on Christmas Eve (Thursday 24 December) you will have a special collection on Tuesday December 29 instead.

“The decision to only offer the one collection over the two weeks between the December 21 and January 1 has been made for a number of reasons. Having three bank holidays close together means that we have to find a way to offer everyone the fairest possible frequency of collections. This way everyone will have at least one bin emptied over the Christmas period.

“We also hope that by keeping most people’s collection day the same, it will lead to less confusion and residents will be able to get straight back into the normal routine after the Christmas period.

“The dates for collections over the Christmas period are clearly marked on the calendar that was sent to all households in August.

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“The collection dates can also be found online at www.kirklees.gov.uk/bins and residents can also sign up for our bin collection email reminder service at www.kirklees.gov.uk/stayconnected .”

In Calderdale bin days around the borough are altering the week prior to Christmas day but are staying the same between Christmas and New Year’s Eve.

Collections on January 1 have been moved to January 2.

Calderdale Council’s Housing Access and Waste Manager, Heidi Wilson, said: “Unfortunately because of how Christmas and New Year fall this year, it means that many collections are scheduled earlier than they would be normally.

“Every home in Calderdale should have received a leaflet with details of their Christmas collection, but I’d also advise to make a note in a diary or calendar as an extra reminder.”

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