Somerset Waste Partnership has confirmed the extra items it plans to pick up in kerbside collections when its new Recycle More scheme gets the go-ahead in Shepton Mallet.

Somerset Waste Board will this week consider a timetable for rolling-out its Recycle More service.

If proposals are approved on Friday (July 31), Somerset Waste Partnership will launch the new service in Mendip at the end of October.

The new items that will be collected are:

- Plastic tubs

- Food and drink cartons (such as TetraPaks)

- Small electricals

Recycle More, which was trialled six years ago and approved for roll-out by Somerset Waste Board and all its partner councils, will also mean:

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- Every household in the district given an extra recycling container - a bright blue bag - for plastics and metals.

- Rubbish collected every three weeks instead of every two, because the extra recycling should mean more space in bins.

- Expanded recycling for households with communal collections, such as flats and houses of multiple occupancy, and schools as part of future plans.

As well as Recycle More, the board meeting will discuss the impacts of coronavirus, which saw the temporary closure of recycling centres and disruption to collection services.

With more people spending more time at home, April and May saw increases in waste and recycling, notably glass and cardboard, compared to 2019.

Food waste collected was up by more than a quarter in these months, though partly as a result of the Slim My Waste campaign, which will be discussed at the meeting.