Collection of garden waste across a district will resume after the firm responsible recruited new HGV drivers.

Households across Folkestone, Hythe and Romney Marsh were told in July that brown bins would go unemptied as a result of a shortage of qualified drivers and staff being forced to isolate in the so-called 'pingdemic'.

Today Folkestone and Hythe District Council has announced the service will begin again now the staffing crunch at contractor Veolia has eased.

Collections will resume on Monday, September 27.

Cllr Stuart Peall, cabinet member for waste, said: "I have always been clear that we did not want to restart the garden waste collection service until we were confident that it would not have to be suspended again.

"While we will always be exposed to external factors, a number of safeguards have been put in place by Veolia to ensure that risk is minimised.

"The decision made back in July, although difficult, has resulted in continuous and improving collections for the priority waste streams such as clinical, food, refuse, and recycling.

"I would like to once again thank residents for their patience..."

"I would like to once again thank residents for their patience and understanding over the past few months, and apologise for the difficulties the suspension has raised for residents."

The council says it is still working on how best to offer partial refund for those households who have paid to subscribe to the service this year.

Details of the proposed rebate will be announced as soon as they are confirmed.

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