RESIDENTS and permit holders keen to get rid of household waste can now book a slot to visit the Stourbridge tip online.

Dudley Council bosses reopened the borough's Household Waste Recycling Centre in Birmingham Street on Monday May 11 for residents who had pre-booked a slot by phone.

The service has proved incredibly popular with slots filling up fast, and staff at Dudley Council Plus have been taking a high volume of calls over the past few weeks, that council bosses have launched an online booking service for slots which launched on Friday (June 5).

Residents can reserve a slot, subject to demand, and this now includes residents with vans, trailers and pickups who already have a permit.

The number of visits per hour is being limited to allow people to use the site safely.

Households and existing permit holders will be limited to one visit per week (subject to availability) to maximise the number of residents who can benefit from the site being open.

Anyone turning up without a prior appointment will be turned away without exception.

Permit holders should take their permit with them and hold it up against a closed window for inspection.

Hired vans should take their hired agreements with them and also hold these up against a closed window for inspection.

Rules allow for just one person per vehicle unless two people are needed to unload.

No children or pets are allowed. Strict social distancing measures are in place to help keep staff and visitors safe.

Due to social distancing, no assistance for unloading can be provided, and users are asked to sort their waste before arrival.

The re-use shop remains closed and parking will be limited to one side.

Councillor Karen Shakespeare, Dudley's cabinet member for environmental, highways and street services, said: "We know residents and permit holders really value the council tip service and we worked hard to re-open it as soon as possible for our residents in a way that is safe both for them and our staff.

“Although the booking system is a different way of working we have seen almost 10,000 of our residents visit since we re-opened it on May 11 and many have found it easier with a pre-booked slot.

"We’ve tried to streamline things and make the process as safe and simple as we can, which is why we can now make the tip accessible again to permit holders with vans, trailers and pick-ups.

"In order to keep people safe we do need to keep strict social distancing measures in place for the time being which is why we are only taking prior bookings.

"We do anticipate that people may have to queue when they get to the site so I would ask people to please bear with us and respect others including our site staff."

The new, online booking service can be accessed via the council website.

If all slots are taken, no more bookings can be made until the following Monday when more slots will be released.

People can call Dudley Council Plus on 0300 555 2345 if they have a query relating to their booking.

Standard bulky waste collections for items such as sofas or garden waste can still be booked by calling Dudley Council Plus on 0300 555 2345.

For items such as mattresses and carpets, people can call Textek, a company working with the council to offer discounted rate collections. They can be contacted on 01948 840251.

Permits are available to borough residents and are issued free of charge.