Six Oxfordshire tips to close soon
- Oxfordshire County Council will close six household waste recycling centres in May and June, reducing local tip access. - Affected sites include centres across the county, with closures prompting concerns about increased fly-tipping and waste pressure. - Campaigners and residents urged clearer plans and alternatives from the council as services change (bbc.co.uk).
Six of Oxfordshire’s seven household waste recycling centres will shut for two weekdays each in May and June for deep cleaning and maintenance. (oxfordshire.gov.uk) Oxfordshire County Council said the closures will be staggered, not simultaneous, and each site will reopen at 8am the following day. The work includes jet washing, repainting lines and safety areas, and other repairs. (oxfordshire.gov.uk) The affected sites are Oakley Wood near Wallingford on 7-8 May, Alkerton near Banbury on 11-12 May, Ardley near Bicester on 14-15 May, Stanford in the Vale near Faringdon on 18-19 May, Drayton near Abingdon on 21-22 May, and Dix Pit at Stanton Harcourt on 2-3 June. (oxfordshire.gov.uk) Redbridge in Oxford is not on that May-June list, but the council said it will close for around three months in summer 2026 for safety work, with a separate deep clean later in the year. (oxfordshire.gov.uk) The short closures land after Oxfordshire changed how its tips operate. A booking system started on 14 January 2026, and residents must reserve a slot online or by phone before visiting. (oxfordshire.gov.uk) The county council runs seven household waste recycling centres in all, and it approved wider service changes in November 2025. Those include charging visitors from outside Oxfordshire £15 per vehicle and later reducing opening hours from winter 2027. (oxfordshire.gov.uk) The council said the 2027 hours change will cut weekly opening from 63 hours now to 56 hours in summer and 49 hours in winter. It said more than 5,800 people responded to the 2025 consultation that shaped the plan. (oxfordshire.gov.uk) Oxfordshire’s consultation page says household waste recycling centres are a statutory service, and the council has been seeking to “modernise” the network and improve efficiency. The same consultation warned that changes to access can affect residents differently depending on where they live and how they travel. (letstalk.oxfordshire.gov.uk) The council says no booking slots will be offered for sites on closure days, and residents who cannot wait for their local centre to reopen should use details on its website to find alternatives. (oxfordshire.gov.uk)
