 New waste collections to make essential savings
We’re changing how we collect rubbish and recycling from most households next summer to help us protect our finances and reduce our impact on the environment.
We should be changing anyway to honour our climate commitments and meet Government recycling targets, but the new system will save us more than £1 million a year.
This will help us as we face unprecedented financial challenges due to rising costs, growing demand for services like social care and years of underfunding from Westminster.
We’ve got to make savings of £12 million in the current financial year (2023/4), which we've already identified, and then more beyond that.
As we consider some tough decisions, we must protect funding to help those who need it most, like older people and children who need extra support at school or home.
This is in addition to the environmental benefits, including a significant reduction in carbon emissions and an expected increase in our recycling rate from 54 to 64 per cent.
Use the button below to register for fortnightly updates on the new collections.
 Helping residents struggling with cost of living
Almost £9,000 in grants has been issued to ten organisations in Wokingham Borough to support residents struggling with the cost of living.
Three groups have received more than £5,000 from the Surviving Winter Fund, in partnership with Berkshire Community Foundation and Wokingham United Charities.
Seven others have also been supported through the Removing Barriers Grants scheme, with £3,500 handed out. The Surviving Winter Fund is paid for thanks to crowdfunding donations by residents earlier this year.
You can see the full list of grants and how to apply for funding if you are involved a local organisation which might want to seek support.
Anyone needing cost of living help now can visit our online help hub.
 Best for finding work if you have a learning disability
We’re proud to announce alongside our partners Optalis that Wokingham Borough has ranked number one in England for the proportion of adults with a learning disability in paid employment for 2022/23.
The measure sits as part of the Adult Social Care Outcomes Framework (ASCOF), which is the system used in the UK to assess how well care and support services achieve the outcomes that matter most to people.
The Optalis Supported Employment Service invests a huge amount of effort and time to support so many in our community to gain access to employment and also to stay in work.
This is hugely important for those with disability to have the opportunity to thrive in a job as it is great for boosting their independent.
 Free festive film screenings filling up fast
More than half the tickets for free festive film screenings have been booked.
The showings at Wokingham Leisure Centre (Carnival Hub) in Wokingham are filling up fast so remember to book your tickets. There’s still space on Friday 22 December for:
- Miracle on 34th Street (1947) – 10am to 12 noon
- Deck the Halls – 6pm to 8pm
To book, scroll to the timetable section of the page. Select 'kids' from the menu options and Friday 22 December as the date. Booking options will then appear.
 California Cross improvements start in February
Work to improve California Cross in Finchampstead will be starting in mid-February, bringing a sense of community to the centre of the village.
The improvements, which were funded by developers and chosen following public consultation, prioritise pedestrians, cyclists and other non-motorists, as well as improve the look of the area.
The design features aspects which have successfully worked in other areas and have won awards. It includes:
- Additional crossing points raised to pavement level and with contrasting designs
- Crossing points at right angles which those with impaired vision may prefer to use
- Re-designed parking at Avery Corner to prioritise pedestrians and improve access to the school
- Widened car park access and switch the parade car parking entry and exit
- Cosmetic improvements including new streetlights, planting and bollards, and totems co-designed with Nine Mile Ride School and Gorse Ride School
Two drop-ins have been arranged to meet the project team, find out more about the project and have any questions answered. There is no need to book, just turn up. You can use the links below to add the sessions directly to your calendar.
- Location - California Ratepayers Hall (RG40 3RL)
- Date - Tuesday 19 December
- Afternoon session - 12 noon to 2pm
- Evening session - 5pm to 7pm
We’ll have two more updates for you next week before we pause this newsletter until the New Year. Our Christmas and New Year opening hours have now been confirmed.
The final Residents’ Round-up will on Friday 22 December and will have all the information you’ll need for the festive break. We’ll return on Friday 5 January.
What you might have missed
In case you didn’t catch them, here’s all our email newsletter updates from the last week:
Sign up for these email newsletters on our website.
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