A £20 charge to collect bulky waste items will continue after a year-long trial period was deemed to be a success.

The fee, agreed by the Mayor of Newham, Sir Robin Wales, and councillors at Thursday’s cabinet meeting, allows up to six items, such as fridges and mattresses, to be collected at a time.

Between April, when the pilot scheme began, and December, the council received 11,786 requests to collect bulky items, with an average of 4.1 items collected each time.

During that time, there has been no significant increase in illegal dumping or fly-tipping.

The trial period ran alongside the Keep Newham Clean campaign, designed to raise awareness of cleaning and recycling services in the borough.

CllrIan Corbett, mayoral adviser for environment and leisure, said: “The introduction of the bulky waste charge has been a success alongside the other elements of our Keep Newham Clean campaign. The charge has saved us half a million pounds, which is being redirected to vital services including enhanced street cleansing and the fly-tip task force.

“The evidence suggests that the vast majority of residents are doing their bit by changing their behaviour and taking responsibility for keeping the borough cleaner and safer.

“But we are not complacent and there is still a lot of work to be done both to educate and inform residents, and where necessary to take enforcement action against those who continue to flout the law and use our street as dumping grounds.”