Croydon tips to open tomorrow

By Tara O’Connor, Local Democracy Reporter

Croydon’s three tips are set to reopen to the public tomorrow – but residents have been asked not to all rush at once.

And there will be new opening times and rules in place to help keep residents safe while on site.

Factory Lane, Fishers Farm and Purley Oaks recycling centres will reopen.

At this time the centres will accept household waste in black bags, garden waste, small electrical goods and small ‘bulky waste’ items that cannot be put in black bags, including furniture such as chairs and carpets.

Visitors must be able to carry items on their own, as social distancing means staff will not be able to help them.

And signs have been installed to remind residents to keep two metres apart.

At this time, only cars will be able to use the facilities and just one person can get out of the vehicle.

There may be longer queues than normal as fewer cars will be able to access the tips at one time – it may also mean temporarily closing them if they become too busy.

The new opening times are:

Factory Lane, in West Croydon, will open from 7.30am to 4.30pm Monday to Saturday and 8.30am to 4pm on Sundays. Visitors have to access the site from the south via Roman Way, A236.

Purley Oaks, in Purley, will open from 8am to 3.30pm Monday to Sunday. There will be no access from Purley. All visitors will need to join the queue on Brighton Road, A235, north of the site.

Fishers Farm, in New Addington, will open from 8am to 4pm Monday to Friday, 9am to 2pm on Saturdays and 9am to 1pm on Sundays. Access is maintained as usual.

Councillor Stuart Collins, cabinet member for clean, green Croydon, asked residents not to all rush to the tips at once.

He said: “We do expect the sites to be busy but residents can help us to reduce queue time by visiting later in the week and at quieter times, avoiding the start and end of the day where possible and only making the trip if absolutely necessary.

“We are still asking residents to store excess waste safely at home if they are able to or to use the council’s bulky waste collection service.

“While the new rules may make it take longer to access the facilities, I hope residents can understand the need to introduce these measures to help protect both them and site staff.”

Anyone self-isolating due to Covid-19 symptoms or those in the shielded group should not visit the HRRCs.

Pictured: Factory Lane tip in west Croydon