Cleaning up: £720m shared waste and street cleansing contract tendered

A quartet of councils acting as part of a shared service have launched procurement on a major £720m joint waste collection and street cleaning contract that could run for 21 years.

Joint Waste Solutions (JWS) was formed in 2017 to manage and deliver frontline waste collection, recycling and street cleansing services for Elmbridge, Surrey Heath and Woking borough councils and Mole Valley District Council.

The tender emphasised the need for the successful supplier to use digital technologies and data-driven service models, such as in-cab tracking, digital self-service tools for customers, automated performance dashboards and innovations in route optimisation or contamination detection.

The contract is expected to run from 6 June 2027 to 5 June 2035, with two possible seven-year extensions that will bring the end date to 2048 for a total possible run-time of 21 years.

The successful supplier will be expected to handle:

• Household Waste and Recycling Collection
• Bulky Waste and Clinical Waste Collections
• Street Cleansing and Litter Management
• Container management
• Fleet and Depot Management
• Customer Service and Digital Interfaces
• Data Provision, Performance Monitoring, and Reporting
• Innovation, Trials, and Behavioural Change Support
• Social Value and Environmental Sustainability Commitments

The enquiry deadline is 18 August 2025, with requests to participate due on 29 August and the successful bid to be announced on 4 June 2026.

Full details on how to participate are available here.

Image credit: Shutterstock @Andy333