Local Government Services Recycling & Waste Webpage Guidance

Local Government Services

Recycling & Waste Webpage Guidance

March 2011 The purpose of these guidelines is to give basic and practical suggestions on reviewing local authority recycling and waste web pages Project code: FRA039 Date: March 2011 Waste & Resources The Old Academy Tel: 01295 819 900 Helpline freephone Action Programme 21 Horse Fair Fax: 01295 819 911 0808 100 2040 Banbury, Oxon E-mail: [email protected] OX16 0AH

Contents 1.0! ! Search Options ......................................................................................................................... 4!2.0! ! Ease of Use ............................................................................................................................... 5!3.0! ! Household Recycling & Waste Services ................................................................................... 5!4.0! ! Household Waste and Recycling Centres (HWRCs) and Bring Sites ........................................ 6!5.0! ! Waste Prevention and Reuse ................................................................................................... 7!6.0! ! Commercial Waste and Recycling Services .............................................................................. 8!7.0! ! Facts and Figures...................................................................................................................... 8!8.0! ! Schools Information ................................................................................................................. 9!9.0! ! Contact Information, News & PR ........................................................................................... 10!10.0! !Monitoring and Evaluation ..................................................................................................... 10!

Review of Recycling & Waste Web Pages

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Background Websites are an essential communications channel for local authorities. They are a particularly useful mechanism for householders to find out information about Council services. There are many benefits to both the local authority and the resident of well structured, easy to use and informative website, these include: Websites never close and are ‘open’ 24 hours a day and 7 days a week; They enable users to access information quickly and at a time which is convenient for them; They provide an opportunity to motivate users to take action; If they are updated regularly they can contain accurate and detailed information; and They can help relieve the pressure on call centres and frontline staff as users can access the

information they require online rather than making a call.

Waste and recycling pages are frequently visited by householders who want to find out more about their services for example: what they can and cannot recycle, what receptacles are available, collection times etc. As a result, these pages should include essential service information in an easily accessible way, such as: An up to date description of the waste and recycling services available along with collection day

information; Information about new services or changes to existing services; Details and locations of household waste and recycling centres; Commercial recycling and waste collection services; Waste prevention and re-use initiatives; Useful facts and figures supporting the recycling and waste collection services; Educational resources for schools (where relevant); and Contact details, PR and events.

This guidance document and web page review methodology has been developed as a result of requests for waste and recycling web page reviews from a number of London Boroughs to help: Ensure they provide relevant information about the services; Make them easier to use; and Enhance the user experience.

An evaluation matrix was developed to assist with the review process, which systematically outlines essential information the recycling and waste web pages should contain. In addition to the matrix, a scoring system was created, so that priorities for improvement could be identified and a site under review could be compared with other sites or its own development judged over time. Reviewing the recycling and waste web pages of six London Authorities tested the methodology; a copy of the review and assessment matrix for the London Borough of Lambeth is provided as an example in Appendix B. The six authorities involved were: Brent; East London Waste Authority, a partnership made up of four boroughs; Hammersmith and Fulham; Lambeth; Wandsworth; and Westminster.

As a result of the experience gained from the reviews, the matrix was refined (provided as Appendix A) and this document produced to provide guidance to other local authorities that may wish to conduct a similar review.


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Aims of the guidance document: To suggest essential information that should be included about waste and recycling services as

well as waste prevention and re-use; To recommend a structure that could be adopted to present the information; To provide a simple methodology to review and score the effectiveness of a website so that areas

which need attention can be identified; and To provide examples of issues, which were identified whilst conducting the reviews of local

authority web pages using this methodology (these will have been addressed if necessary following the review and will no be longer available to view on the websites).

The guidance has been broken down into 10 key areas, which are fundamental to delivering well structured recycling and waste web pages, which makes it easy for householders to find the information they need. 1.0 Search Options It is very important to have an address for the website that is easy to remember and describes its content, so for example www.yourcouncil.gov.uk/recycling directing householders to the recycling pages is a good option. The web address for your council services should be included on all waste and recycling promotional material that is produced so residents can access the site easily and find more information. The home page of the Council website should also have an easy link to the recycling and waste pages; it is often difficult to find this information as websites can be structured by department names rather than commonly used terms for the service householders are looking for. It is also important to make sure that Internet search engines can find the web pages easily by identifying certain words and phrases. This can be achieved by embeding detailed descriptions of each page (<meta> keywords and descriptions) in your website recycling and waste pages. By describing what information is provided in the metadata of your council recycling pages, they will climb higher up the search results. For example, somebody searching with Google for ‘Your council Recycling’ would easily find your website and it would come high in the search results. The council web team should be consulted to ensure that the recycling and waste pages are optimised for web search engines.

East London Waste Authority – Searching for the right website The East London Waste Authority (ELWA) is a Waste Disposal Authority, responsible for the disposal of waste from a partnership of four London Boroughs, including: Newham, Barking and Dagenham, Havering and Redbridge. ELWA has two excellent websites eastlondonwaste.gov.uk and recycleforyourcommunity.com but users faced the following issues when trying to find them using search engines: When searching for ELWA and East London Waste Authority, search engines return with the main ELWA website. Similarly searching for Recycle for your community brings up their Recycle for your community website. However, the ELWA and Recycle for your community searches do not bring up both of these websites at the same time. In addition to this, by searching for each individual partner Boroughs’ websites followed by the term recycling e.g. Newham recycling web searches do not bring up the corresponding ELWA page (except in the case of Barking and Dagenham). Recommendation: Add meta tags and descriptions to all of the websites pages (both partner site pages and individual borough site pages). This will help search engines identify them, display descriptions more effectively and rank the websites higher in search results.

Use a memorable URL on all your promotional material to direct residents to your web pages for more information


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2.0 Ease of Use This is a key area and defines how easy it is for users to find the information they are looking for and how easy it is to understand the information. There should be a clear simple hierarchy on the home page of the waste and recycling section outlining what it contains. It should be easily and intuitively navigable with the minimum number of clicks to access the information required. Content should be concise and avoid any unnecessary duplication of information. The information and messaging should be structured so that it is appropriate to the audience. Wording should be straightforward and free of jargon and provide the information in as simple a way as is possible. The appearance and tone of the information should be friendly and positive and include good quality photographs and illustrations to help break up the text and explain the information in a visual way. This is particularly important in areas of mixed demographics and transient populations. There should be clear links to other relevant pages and key links provided to the most frequently visited areas. If reference is made to a linking page in the body of the text a hyperlink should be provided in the body text for people to click on to jump to the page or to a new section within the current document. Users should not be expected to find the link in another part of the page.

East London Waste Authority – Complete information in one place The East London Waste Authority (ELWA) has two websites. The older eastlondonwaste.gov.uk website giving information about the partnership and the services. The more recent recycleforyourcommunity.com website, targeted more heavily to the user. The recycle for your community website displayed excellent accessibility. Hierarchy is simple, intuitive with complete and concise information. There were plenty of facts, benefits around recycling and the text was broken up with good quality illustrations which created a very attractive and effective website. The older site also contained excellent information but did not have the usability of the new site (recycle for your community); much of the information was duplicated. Recommendation: Consolidate the information from the two sites into one, retaining the appearance of the recycleforyourcommunity.com website.

3.0 Household Recycling & Waste Services Probably the most visited area in recycling and waste web pages is the one giving details of services provided directly to households. This includes: Residual waste collections; Recycling collections; Food waste collections; and Garden waste collections.

Each section should have a clear description of the service and what is collected. WRAP material stream iconography and/or photographs should be used to help illustrate what can and cannot be recycled. The benefits of recycling and what happens to the materials once collected should also be provided to further encourage residents to use the services.

It should be easily and intuitively navigable, concise and avoid any unnecessary duplication with minimal clicks needed to access the information required.

Each section should have a clear description of the service and what is collected.


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A collection day look up tool should also be provided to make it easy for users to find out when their recycling and waste is collected; especially if this is fortnightly or the services are provided on different days of the week. A section dedicated to frequently asked questions (FAQs) for each service is also useful. It should be possible to establish a list of FAQs from the Council’s call centre, crews or from lists used by similar authorities. This could be combined with an A-Z of recycling, thus providing a comprehensive guide to recycling in the area. Information should also be provided on special waste collections, how to obtain the service and who to contact. Collections to include are: Bulky waste; Hazardous waste; and Clinical waste.

If new services are being introduced a section for the new service should be developed on the web-pages and uploaded before the first introductory communication is sent out to households. This will help reduce the number of calls to the call centre and frontline council staff enabling queries to be managed effectively. Consideration should also be given to developing a tool for users to provide their email addresses to register for email updates on the services. This will provide an easy and inexpensive way of keeping people up to date with changes to services, news and events and waste prevention initiatives. Similarly links to the national Recycle Now and Love Food Hate Waste websites could also be included both of which will provide more information on recycling and waste prevention.

London Borough of Wandsworth – Recycling collections Wandsworth Borough Council (WBC) runs a single stream co-mingled recycling collection for its residents. Mixed recyclables are contained in orange sacks and collected either outside householders’ properties or in communal bins. However, there are issues with their explanation about these services on their website. Their Orange Sack and Orange Bank pages contain a lot of good information but there is no detail about what materials can and cannot be recycled. These could only be found by following a link at the bottom of a long page of text. Information on what can be recycled is essential and this is particularly difficult to find. Recommendation: Including information on the materials that can and cannot be recycled within the recycling page content and making good use of the Recycle Now material stream icons easily solves this problem. The benefits of recycling were also added to encourage householders to make use of the services.

4.0 Household Waste and Recycling Centres (HWRCs) and Bring Sites Household waste and recycling centres (HWRCs) and bring sites are important parts of the service and allow householders to recycle materials not collected at the kerbside or to recycle where a kerbside service does not exist. For most residents using a HWRC is not a frequent event but it is helpful for all the information regarding the site to be included on the website, so that it can be referred to when planning a visit, for example: Location; Opening hours; What can be recycled; Whether waste is accepted; Opportunities for disposing of special wastes; and

When approaching your website, imagine that you are a user who is looking for a piece of information. If you cannot easily and intuitively find all the information required you should question the website structure.


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Re-use opportunities.

Contact information should also be provided, if not for the site itself for an administrative office during office hours. Similarly with bring sites, information should include: Location; and What can be recycled.

It is useful to include a link to the Recycle Now website which provides a post code locator tool enabling users to search for recycling services in their local area. In addition to this, there is a Recycle Now widget that can be added to your site and will help spread the message about what can and cannot be recycled (depending on your collection systems). This can be easily added to you site by following the online instructions.

Lambeth Borough Council – Bringing clarity to HWRCs and bring sites Lambeth Borough Council (LBC) recycling and waste pages contain a wealth of information on HWRCs and bring sites. However, the information was difficult to find with many points duplicated. In addition to local recycling bank sites, there are two HWRCs in the area, Smugglers Way and Cringle Dock, and one dedicated reuse and recycling centre at Vale Street. This information is currently grouped under one main section Recycling Banks & Disposal Sites and then splits into two separate sections. One of which provides details of the Vale Street Reuse and Recycling Centre and the other, Reuse and Recycling Centres is incorrectly titled as it contains information about the two HWRCs and recycling bank facilities. This is confusing for the user and information on the facilities available can be overlooked. The solution was easy and largely consisted of basic restructuring. The Recycling Banks and Disposal Sites section should be reworked to ensure information relating to the HWRCs and dedicated reuse and recycling centre are in one section with a second section containing information on the recycling banks only. Information would then be consistent across the pages and alternative methods of disposal clearly linked and explained in the text of each page. Recommendation: User testing can be an effective way to determine how users source information via web pages. Increasingly more local authorities are now setting up user groups to test website structure and content. Some local authorities, such as Westminster City Council, also use response forms at the bottom of information pages to gather feedback from users, which is then used to improve information contained on the web pages.

5.0 Waste Prevention and Re-use Waste prevention and re-use are at the top of the waste hierarchy and should be encouraged. Local authority waste and recycling pages should include information on the following where relevant: Home composting, how to compost and where to buy home

compost bins; How to stop unsolicited mail using the Mailing Preference Service

and the Royal Mail Opt Out scheme; Reusable nappies; FAQs and where to buy them; Suggestions for smart shopping and links to local retailers; Re-use suggestions, hints and FAQs; Computer, printer cartidge and phone reuse; links and details to organisations; Links to or details of second hand clothes and charity shops; Links to furniture and household appliance re-use projects; Links to community waste sector re-use organisations such as Freecycle; and Link to local waste reduction community groups.

Waste prevention and re-use form the top of the waste hierarchy and should be actively encouraged


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London Borough of Brent – Working in partnership towards waste reduction The waste and recycling pages of the London Borough of Brent’s website take a collaborative approach to educating people about waste reduction and reuse. The West London Waste Authority (WLWA) serves the London Borough of Brent and five other authorities in West London. The West London Waste Authority website has comprehensive information about waste reduction, re-use and other waste prevention opportunities in the West London area. All six councils provide a link from their website to the WLWA website waste reduction pages. This approach allows the six authorities to provide links from their websites to this common source of information. By using this attractive and well edited website as an extension to their own, this saves the councils’ time and resources in not having to develop their own information. This is a good option for a group of closely associated councils.

6.0 Commercial Waste and Recycling Services Not all councils provide commercial waste or recycling collection services. If they do not, it may be helpful to provide a list of contractors who provide these services in the locality. Care should be taken to state that these are not recommended contractors or that the list is inclusive of all organisations that could provide these services. If the council does provide commercial waste and recycling services it would be helpful to provide information, which includes: The legal aspects of commercial waste collection and disposal; The responsibility of the producer of the waste and its transfer; Services the council provides including: sizes of bins, frequency of collections and charges; Contact information to arrange collections and to deal with queries; and An explanation of the benefits of commercial recycling to the organisation and the environment.

Lambeth Borough Council – Success in commercial waste Lambeth’s commercial waste section on its website is ideally structured. All relevant pages are contained within this section and it is easy to find, linking from business and environment and waste sections. Individual pages are clear, concise and emphasise the responsibilities of business owners. Contact details are clearly visible and link through to other pages and supporting text explaining the different options. This approach means that business users can find the necessary information quickly with minimal searching or redirection.

7.0 Facts and Figures Some users are keen to know more about how their waste is collected, treated and reprocessed for recycling. It is helpful to inform householders who collects their waste and who disposes of it. This information is also useful to help students who are carrying out projects and completing assignments and community groups who simply require a better understanding of the waste and recycling processes. Also, research has shown that many householders are motivated to recycle more by understanding how their recyclables are sorted, reprocessed and transformed into other products as part of the process. Information contained in a waste and recycling facts section could include:

Provide an explanation of the benefits of commercial recycling to the organisation and the environment

Research has shown that many householders are motivated to recycle more by understanding how their recyclables are sorted and what products are made from them


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Which local authority collects and which disposes of waste; this is especially relevant in areas which have separate waste collection and disposal authorities;

An explanation of the collection process; An explanation of the disposal of residual waste; How recyclables are sorted; Where recyclables are sent for reprocessing – the Recycle Now website provides a suite of

animations that demonstrate what happens to waste once it is collected along with a summary of useful facts and figures. These can be easily added to your site by following the online instructions;

What is made from the recyclables; The benefits of waste reduction and recycling; Tonnage information, how much collected, disposed of and recycled; Recycling performance against targets; and Other relevant information e.g how are the targets set.

Hammersmith and Fulham – Motivating people to care The London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham’s website is a typical example of many council websites. It has excellent information on services, helping users to participate successfully in collections and waste reduction activities such as composting. However, there is very little mention of the benefits of these activities. Only by educating people about the economic, environmental and social benefits of using these services can we expect them to understand why they should recycle and be motivated to take part. By including the benefits, issues, targets and achievements, whenever a service is communicated, it allows people to make an informed decision whether to get involved.

8.0 Schools Information Local authorities should consider providing waste reduction and recycling information to schools for several reasons: As organisations they produce waste which should be recycled or

treated appropriately; Pupils may need information for projects; Services in schools which mirror services at home create a clear way

of dealing with waste in all aspects of life; and Children will influence their parents to recycle and reduce waste.

Information should include: Provision of waste and recycling services to schools; Educational support which can be made available, such as talks and

educational packs; Signposting to the facts section on the website; and Links to other helpful websites and resources – the Recycle Now website has a dedicated schools

section which provides useful tools and information for both primary and secondary school children which can be easily downloaded.

Westminster City Council - Schools, a missed opportunity Westminster City Council (WCC) has an excellent feedback system featured on every page of their website. With this tool it is possible to see lots of feedback from school children working on projects exploring the issues of waste and recycling. This feedback was generally very positive and reflected well on the information Westminster has provided. It would have been even better to have an entire section dedicated to schools. From here it would be possible to deliver targeted information, education packs and information on school collection. Educating children about recycling and waste prevention enables them to pass information on to their parents.

By creating a greater level of education and awareness we can ensure that children develop a positive attitude to waste and the environment


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9.0 PR, News and Contact Information Good public relations are an effective and low cost means of getting your message out to householders by involving local media. This should be managed carefully to ensure positive messages go out. This can be achieved by: Developing a news section for the website which could be used as

an RSS feed for residents who subscribe; Involving the media at an early stage and producing press packs

which contain accurate and comprehensive information; Producing press releases at appropriate times; and Providing spokespersons when required.

Examples where this should be used are: When introducing new services or making changes to existing services; As news stories break where a comment or explanation is required; and Promoting events such as roadshows, opening of facilities and service launches.

The website should be used as a point of access for all the press information and information about events and other public facing activities. It should have up to date press releases and old ones archived but available. Contact information should be clearly displayed on all pages where residents may wish to contact the council for further information. This is especially impotant in the services sections. This should include: Telephone numbers; Email addresses; and Office or contact centre opening hours.

Hammersmith and Fulham – Passing on the news The London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham’s website has a clear News section. There are easy to find links in both the side menu of the home page and the website sitemap contained within the footer of every page. The News page provides up to date information supplemented with clear photographs for each story. Suggested improvement: Although the News page has the general website search bar, this searches the entire website site rather than just the news section. Searching using this bar means that all of the website pages that contain the search words would be displayed in the results. To avoid this, it was recommended that an additional search bar be added into the news section specifically to search the news archive. This would improve the functionality of the news page.

10.0 Monitoring and Evaluation Effective monitoring is important for measuring the impact of waste and recycling services. Similarly, actively monitoring a website is a good way of establising its effectiveness. Means of measurement can include: Visits and unique visitors; Referals from other sites and search engines; User comments through on-line surveys or user feedback forms; User testing; and Occasional use of a review methodology as proposed here.

There should be a process in place to amend the website based on monitoring information and it should be part of workplans or responsibilities

Use carefully planned PR when introducing new services or making changes to existing services, or as news stories break where a comment or explanation is required


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There should be a process in place to amend the website based on the monitoring information and it should be part of workplans or responsibilities of officers in the recycling and web sections. This will ensure sites are up to date, duplication is avoided and the site is functioning effectively.

Westminster City Council – Feedback from user forms Westminster City Council has a very effective way of monitoring their web pages. This consists of a feedback form at the foot of most pages called ‘Was this Useful?’. This allows residents to score the usefulness of the content and to leave comments if they wish. This information is then collated and used to make improvements to the site. The feedback was also used as part of the recycling and waste web page review and provided direct positive and negative comments from residents. Westminster also regularly user test their website through an external organisation. The number of visits they receive usually dictates the parts of the council site tested. The site is updated as a result of both these areas of feedback and user testing.

11.0 Using the Evaluation Matrix The evaluation matrix provided in Appendix A has been developed to provide a guide to help review recycling and waste web pages. It suggests the content for well structured recycling and waste web pages and follows the numbering convention of the guidance above. The process should be systematically undertaken using the matrix, adding comments to each section where improvements can be made. Scores should be provided from 1-5 and multiplied by the weighting to provide a total score for each attribute. Totalling these scores will give an overall score for the site. Areas that score least can be prioritised for attention. Appendix B has been provided to act as an example of a review carried out for London Borough of Lambeth.

Appendix A This table has been developed to establish whether the content and effectiveness of a website is of a good standard and highlights any enhancements that may be required. Completing it systematically will identify areas that need improvement. The scoring system will also allow work to improve the site to be prioritised and allow the effectiveness of the site to be evaluated at regular intervals. Key: Score: Each element and attribute on the site (if it is present) is judged subjectively and given a score between 1 and 5. If it is not present it scores 0. Weighting: Each element or attribute has also been ‘weighted’ for importance on a scale of 1 – 3. For example a weighting of 3 is given where it is thought that particular element or attribute would contribute highly towards achieving the council’s objectives, and conversely, a weighting of 1 is given where it was felt the contribution would be low.

Your Council Website Review Initial Review of Current Website

Weighting Score Total Comments

1-3 0-5 Score x wt.

1. Search Options

How easy is it to find using search engines?

Is there a memorable URL?

2. Ease of Use

Good hierarchy and design – Clear, easily navigable and avoiding unnecessary duplication of information

Appearance

Ease of use

Use of photographs and illustration


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Information structured to focus on target audience

How clear is the signposting/menu to different areas

Instant links to key areas

3. Household Services

Waste collection services and contacts

Recycling introduction and benefits

Recycling collection services and contacts

Food waste collections – Explanation of service and benefits

Food waste collections – Accepted materials

Garden waste collections – Explanation of service and benefits

Garden waste collections – Accepted materials

Day of collection 'look up'

Introduction of new services

FAQs

A-Z of materials - where to recycle

What happens to Materials collected

Recycling performance in the area

Email gathering for updates to householders

Link to national Recycle Now website

Bulky waste collections


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Hazardous Waste collections

Clinical waste collections

4. HWRCs and Bring Sites Household Waste and Recycling Centres; locations, opening hours, contact information and materials

Recycling bring sites; location and materials

5. Waste Reduction and Reuse

Home composting; explanation and benefits

How to compost and FAQs

Link to purchase compost bins or find more information

Junk Mail explanation

Junk mail FAQs

Link to stop junk mail or more information

Reusable Nappies explanation

Reusable nappy FAQs

Link to purchase reusable nappies or more information

Smart Shopping explanation

Links to opportunities and retailers

Explanation of reuse

Opportunities to reuse/hints/FAQs

Clothes, charity shops

IT, print cartridges, phones, etc

Furniture reuse projects, links and details

Links to community sector waste organisations


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Community groups - legitimate waste reduction organisations

6. Commercial Waste & Recycling Services

Commercial waste recycling collections and contacts

Commercial Waste collection and contacts

7. Facts and Figures

Who collects and disposes of waste; explanation

Explanation of collection and disposal process for recycling and waste

Waste collection and disposal authorities; contacts

Useful facts

Recycling Performance

Targets

Other relevant information

8. Schools Information

Introduction and educational support

Collections from schools

Links to helpful resources

9. PR and Events

Current press releases - ease of identification

Archived press releases - ease of use

Timetable of events

Introduction of new services

Surveys


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Consultation

Outcomes of surveys and consultations

Research regarding waste in the county/area

Policy information and links off to more

Total (Max.

800)

Not Include in Scoring

10. Monitoring

Performance; hits and visits

Feedback forms

Reviews

Amendments

Statements

Terms and conditions

Disclaimer

Privacy

Accessibility

Appendix B WRAP – Local Government Services

Website Review London Borough of Lambeth January 2011

A review of the Recycling, Rubbish and Waste information on the London Borough of Lambeth Website Version: Final

Project code: ROT034 Date: Jan 2011 Waste & Resources The Old Academy Tel: 01295 819 900 Helpline freephone Action Programme 21 Horse Fair Fax: 01295 819 911 0808 100 2040 Banbury, Oxon E-mail: [email protected] OX16 0AH

Lambeth Borough Council – Website Review 1

Contents 1.0! Background ................................................................................................................................. 2!

1.1! General .................................................................................................................................. 2!1.2! Website Review....................................................................................................................... 2!

2.0! Methodology and Summary Outcomes ....................................................................................... 3!2.1! Review of content and information ........................................................................................... 3!2.2! Summary of Points to be Addressed ......................................................................................... 3!2.3! Recommendations ................................................................................................................... 7!

Lambeth Borough Council – Website Review

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12.0 Background 12.1 General Lambeth Borough Council (LBC) is responsible for council services in one of the most densely inhabited areas in inner London. It has a population of around 274,000 residents of which approximately 50% are white British and 38% are from ethnic minority backgrounds. It covers an area of 10.4 square miles. LBC provides a number of waste and recycling services for businesses and householders within its area. Householders are provided with bins for the disposal of non-recyclable waste. They are also supplied with orange sacks or green boxes for the co-mingled collection of: Paper and cardboard; Glass bottles and jars; Cans, tins and aerosols; and Plastic bottles

These materials are taken to the Western Riverside Waste Authority reclamation facility in Wandsworth where they are sorted before being sent on for reprocessing. It is claimed that they achieve an impressive 96% recycling rate of received materials. A household garden waste collection service is also provided using reusable green bags. A bulky waste collection is made for residents free of charge up to four times a year. Local waste disposal, recycling and reuse centres focus on returning the maximum proportion of collected materials into reuse and recycling schemes. In addition to non-recyclable waste collection service for commercial users LBC also provides advice on recycling options for businesses. 12.2 Website Review Lambeth Borough Council has information on its website relating to waste and recycling services, which they have asked to be reviewed; specifically the ‘Recycling, rubbish and waste’ pages: http://www.lambeth.gov.uk/Services/Environment/RubbishWasteRecycling/ The aims of the website review are to: Ensure it provides relevant information about the services; Makes it easier to use; and Enhances the user experience.

To facilitate these objectives the project we have undertaken:

A review of the existing navigation and journey the user goes on to find the required information; A review of the existing web page content/information and recommendations for the design and

layout of the pages; and A summary of recommendations on how the users experience could be enhanced.


13.0 Methodology and Summary Outcomes The work has been undertaken using the following methodology to review the ‘Recycling, rubbish and waste’ section of the LBC website. This has provided the following results: 13.1 Review of content and information The content and information provided in the commercial waste pages has been reviewed using the good practice website guide previously developed for WRAP. This establishes whether the content of the site is of a good standard and highlights any enhancements that may be required. A full review of these pages is provided in Appendix A. 13.2 Summary of points to be addressed Recommendations for the revision of the LBC website based on the review of existing web content and information (Appendix A) to improve the site and user experience are as follows: 13.2.1 Priority points to be addressed: In general the recycling, rubbish and waste section of LBC’s website is excellent. The information provided is concise and well structured. There are some minor points that need addressing but these are largely to do with functionality, something that is easily overlooked when the material is familiar to the content creator. The following points outline a series of amendments that, when addressed, will help to improve the general appearance and functionality of the site. Key points and consistent issues were: A lack of explanatory text for the external websites and contacts listed on the LBC pages. Often

links were provided but with no supporting text to inform the user that further information was available on the topic they were researching. This may seem like a minor point but this helps the user to make full use of the information LBC has collated.

The Recycling and Reuse Centres and Lambeth Reuse and Recycling Centre pages need restructuring. At the moment they only serve to confuse. Suggested changes are detailed in the table below. This is one of the few cases of unnecessary duplication, an issue that often makes it harder for the user to find complete information.

Where information on a particular topic is provided over a number of separate pages, clear links need to be provided between the pages, with explanatory text to advise the user on their content and purpose.

The benefits of recycling, reuse and environmentally sound practice are rarely explained. People need to understand the social, environmental and economic benefits, to be motivated to use the recycling services and change their behaviour.

These issues are referenced and described in more detail in the table below. To aid identification, page references shown in the table below complete the following URL unless otherwise indicated: http://www.lambeth.gov.uk/Services/Environment/RubbishWasteRecycling/ Additionally, where appropriate, hyperlinks have been included, which will direct the user to the relevant website page when viewing this document in MS Word.


Table Outlining Suggested Improvements and Amends for Web Pages

Page Reference

Comments Suggested Recommendations

Appearance Clean, clear and efficient but further illustrations/photographs would be beneficial.

Use further illustrations and photographs, e.g. those available at www.recyclenowpartners.org.uk, to help break the text up and illustrate concepts.

Recycling Performance Although there is good information about the percentages that can be recycled there is no information about how much is recycled. A further breakdown by material type may also be useful it available.

Information should be added to include figures and targets with social, environmental and economic benefits. This additional information will provide further encouragement to recycle more.

Email Harvesting No provision for harvesting emails. Consider targeted email harvesting from household and commercial waste sections for targeted updates and emails.

Facts, Figures and Performance Limited facts throughout the recycling and waste sections.

Include figures and targets for the area e.g. waste recycled by percentage, remaining potential waste and Lambeth’s targets. These should then be supported with social, environmental and economic benefits. Without understanding these motivating factors people are less likely to use the service. These can also be used across other communication channels

Press Releases Only available through the search page. A link to press releases would be beneficial. This could include a section broken down by broad topics, a recent releases list and an archive of press releases. Also consider adding in a timetable to this section that could cover meetings, council deadlines etc.

Feedback No feedback form. Consider a short feedback and rating form at the bottom of each page. This would provide further targeted information on the functionality of the website and individual pages.


5

GardenWaste.htm Lack of information about the benefits of garden recycling.

Provide information about the benefits of recycling garden waste. This can include figures and targets with social, environmental and economic benefits.

Recycling/RecyclingCollections.htm The link “when are the recycling collections?” is broken on the “Recycling from home “ page.

Correct the broken link.

Recycling/RecyclingBanksDisposalSites/ReuseRecyclingCentres.htm and Recycling/HouseholdRecyclingCentre.htm

Good information between the Lambeth Reuse and Recycling Centre and Reuse and recycling centres pages. However, these pages are confusing and duplicate information.

The menu in the Recycling page needs to be changed in the following way: Recycling banks and disposal sites should be divided into two sections called Recycling Banks and Waste Disposal, Reuse and Recycling Centres. This would save confusion. This Waste Disposal, Reuse and Recycling Centres section could then contain the Lambeth Reuse and Recycling Centre page. This page would consolidate the current information it contains with the information on Vale Street found in the Reuse and recycling centres page. This Waste Disposal, Reuse and Recycling Centres section would also contain a section called Household Waste Disposal, Reuse and Recycling Centres. This would refer to the current Reuse and recycling centres page with the Vale Street information removed. Both pages should have a link with an explanation that there is the alternative of the Vale Street recycling site/Cringle Dock & Smuggler’s Way Waste disposal, recycling and reuse centres.

Recycling/RecyclingCollections.htm and Where.htm

Limited information on what the recycled materials can become and the Where your recycling goes to page is hard to find.

Put more information on why it is beneficial to convert the materials to new products. Make sure there is a link from the Recycling from home page to the Where your recycling goes to page.

Recycling/RecyclingRubbish.htm This page would benefit from a link to the www.recyclenow.com.

Add the www.recyclenow.com link with text that explains it as a place to find further information about recycling and recycling bring sites.


6

www.lambeth.gov.uk/Services/Environment/RubbishWasteRecycling/

In the Useful Website sidebar the Lambeth Freegive Group is included. However there is no explanation as to what it does, nor is it mentioned in any of the relevant pages as an option of reusing goods/recycling furniture etc.

Make sure this link and an explanation is included in all relevant pages i.e. Reuse and recycling schemes, Reducing and recycling rubbish - a guide, Lambeth reuse and recycling centre and Reuse and recycling centres This principle needs to be applied to other websites listed and appropriate pages. Do not presume the user will know what they are by name.

www.lambeth.gov.uk/Services/Environment/RubbishWasteRecycling/

The Commercial Waste Collection link only appears in the See Also side menu rather than then central menu.

Put a link in the central menu.

ClinicalWaste.htm Although there is information about hazardous waste in the Hazardous Waste (Household) page there is very little information in the Clinical Waste page about other hazardous materials.

There should be more information on how to dispose of other types of hazardous waste. This page could be re-titled Hazardous & Clinical Waste.

Recycling/RecyclingRubbish.htm Very little explanation about junk mail although a useful link to the www.mpsonline.org.uk website. However, it doesn’t say for more information visit www.mpsonline.org.uk, making it unclear.

Say that the website has more information on postal and telephone/fax preference services. Add links to the Royal Mail Opt Out service. There is also the issue that the Recycling link from the Recycling, Rubbish and Waste page would not be the obvious choice for junk mail. The link description could be amended to include the term Waste Reduction.

Recycling/RecyclingRubbish.htm Basic explanation but with link to excellent http://www.realnappycampaign.com/ website. It would be useful to say this website had more information on real nappies.

State that the website contains more information on real nappies and suppliers.

Recycling/RecyclingRubbish.htm Although there is information on buying recycled goods and giving to charity shops this section lacks an explanation of Smart Shopping.

Explain the concept of Smart Shopping and include links to any associated websites etc. A list of local charity shops could be an optional edition.


7

Recycling/RecyclingRubbish.htm This page mentions very little, or virtually nothing about recycling items such as printer cartridges, IT equipment or furniture etc. Although they are covered in the Lambeth Reuse and Recycling Centre and Reuse and recycling centres pages.

Provide links with an explanation that many more things can be recycled at the Lambeth Reuse and Recycling Centre and Reuse and recycling centres.

Recycling/RecyclingRubbish.htm and Recycling/RecyclingWhat.htm

Very little information on the idea of reuse. Add a more detailed explanation explaining the concept and benefits of re-use. This should be included on both pages.

Recycling/RecyclingWhat.htm and Recycling/ This link to this page from the Recycling page is called Recycling Schemes. This is confusing. It is also missing links to and from the Lambeth Reuse and Recycling Centre and Reuse and recycling centres pages.

Make it clearer by changing the link to say Recycling and reuse schemes. Ensure there are clear links between the pages and explanations for what each page offers the user.

Recycling/Schools.htm The link to the Recycle at School section of the Recycle Western Riverside website is broken.

Fix the broken link.

13.2.2 Comments on Appearance The general appearance of the LBC Rubbish, Waste and Recycling website pages is straightforward, of a good quality and accessible. However, there is a lot of text-based information and it would be advantageous to break it up with further illustrations/images. 13.3 Recommendations We would recommend that the Rubbish, Waste and Recycling section of the website is amended systematically using this review of the content. Most of these are simple changes and will act to further improve the user’s experience.


Appendix A The content and information provided on the website has been reviewed by using the good practice guide previously developed for WRAP. This establishes whether the content of the site is of a good standard and highlights any enhancements that may be required. Key recommendations are provided in 2.2. and a full review of the site is provided below. Key: Score: Each element and attribute on the site (if it is present) is judged subjectively and given a score between 1 and 5. If it is not present it scores 0. Weighting: Each element or attribute has also been ‘weighted’ for importance on a scale of 1 – 3. For example a weighting of 3 is given where it is thought that particular element or attribute or contribute highly towards achieving the council’s objectives, and conversely, a weighting of 1 is given where it was felt the contribution would be low. Lambeth Council Recycling, Rubbish and Waste – Initial Review of Current Site

Weighting Score Total Comments

1-3 0-5 Score x wt.

General

How easy is it to find using Google

2 5 10 Very easy to find.

Is there a memorable URL? 3 4 12 Clear and easy.

Appearance 3 3 9 Clean, clear and efficient but further illustrations/photographs would be beneficial.

Ease of use 3 4 12 Very good.

Use of photographs and illustration

3 2 6 Very limited use but where they are included they have been well utilised to support the text.

Information structured to focus on target audience

3 4 12 Good.

Good hierarchy and design – Clear, easily navigable and avoiding unnecessary duplication of information

3 4 12 Generally clear and well organised


9

Introductory Page

How clear is the signposting/menu to different areas

3 4 12 Generally good. Some pages have large amounts of text with links dispersed throughout. A summarising link at these page ends could be beneficial.

Instant links to key areas 3 4 12 Generally very good.

Domestic Waste and Recycling

Waste collection services 3 5 15 Very good.

Recycling introduction and benefits

2 4 8 Very good.

Recycling collection services 3 5 15 Very good.

Food waste collections – Explanation of service and benefits

3 5 15 Very good. Clear and concise.

Food waste collections – Accepted materials

3 5 15 Clear lists of what can and can’t be recycled.

Garden waste collections – Explanation of service and benefits

3 4 12 Good explanation of service but there could be more information about the benefits.

Garden waste collections – Accepted materials

3 5 15 Nice clear yes and no lists.

Day of collection 'look up' 3 4 12 Good. However, the link “when are the recycling collections?” is broken on the Recycling from home page.

Household waste and Recycling Centres

3 4 12

Good information between the Lambeth Reuse and Recycling Centre and Reuse and recycling centres pages. However, these pages are confusing and duplicate information. The menu in the Recycling page needs to be changed in the following way: Recycling banks and disposal sites should be divided into two sections called Recycling Banks and Waste Disposal, Reuse and Recycling Centres. This would save confusion. This Waste Disposal, Reuse and Recycling Centres section could then contain the Lambeth Reuse and Recycling Centre page. This page would consolidate the current information it contains with the information on Vale Street found in the Reuse and recycling centres page. This Waste Disposal, Reuse and Recycling Centres section would also contain a section called Household Waste Disposal, Reuse and Recycling Centres. This would be the current Reuse and recycling centres page with the Vale Street information removed. Both pages should have a link with an explanation that there is the alternative of the Vale Street recycling site/Cringle Dock & Smuggler’s Way Waste disposal, recycling and reuse centres.


10

Recycling bring sites; location and materials

3 4 12 As above.

Introduction of new services 3 4 12 Only evident service was the Christmas Tree recycling which was clear and evident.

FAQs 2 3 6 No FAQ’s. However, there is detailed, clear and well divided information throughout these sections.

A-Z of materials - where to recycle 2 3 6 No actual A-Z but materials and recycling options are outlined well in the pages of the Recycling section.

What happens to Materials collected

2 3 6

Explanation of basic co-mingled collection to sorting site. There could be more information on the potential uses of recycled materials. Also, there need to be links to the Where Your Recycling Goes To page from Reducing and recycling rubbish - a guide and Recycling From Home pages.

Recycling performance in the area 2 0 0 Although there is good information about the percentages that can be recycled there is no information about how much is recycled. This information could be improved further with more information on targets.

Email gathering for updates to householders

3 0 0 No harvesting of emails. This could be a good addition.

Link to national recyclenow website

2 4 8 Recycle Now website mentioned in the Garden Waste page. We would recommend adding the link to the Reducing and recycling rubbish - a guide page. This is the page more likely to be visited for the general information the Recycle Now website offers.

Commercial Waste & Recycling

Commercial recycling 2 4 8 Good, concise general information with plenty of contact details.

Commercial Waste 2 4 8 Good basic information. The link should be in the main menu of the Recycling, rubbish and waste page rather than in the See Also side menu.

Special Collections

Large/Bulky Waste Collections 2 5 10 Very good.

Hazardous Waste 2 4 8 Link to Corporation of London website for household hazardous waste. The clinical waste page for commercial users mentions hazardous waste but could be extended to be clearer about other types of hazardous waste.

Clinical Waste 2 5 10 Clear and concise.

Contacts

Who collects and disposes of waste; explanation

3 2 6 Although there is a good basic explanation of collections and good contact details for different divisions, there is little about the actual collection teams and vehicles etc.

Explanation of collection and disposal process

1 3 3 Good basic explanations of the collection process but more needs to be added on what happens to recycled products after they have been processed.


11

Waste collection and disposal authorities; contacts

3 4 12 Contacts are distributed throughout the literature and as a result are very good.

Waste Reduction

Composting explanation/benefits 3 4 12 Good basic explanations and the linked www.lambeth.getcomposting.com site is excellent.

How to compost and FAQs 3 5 15 Again, good basic explanations and the linked www.lambeth.getcomposting.com site is excellent.

Link to purchase or find more information

3 5 15 Details on website and the linked www.lambeth.getcomposting.com site.

Junk Mail explanation 3 3 9

Very little explanation about junk mail although a useful link to the www.mpsonline.org.uk website. It would be useful to say this website has more information on this and telephone/fax preference services. There is also the issue that the Recycling link from the Recycling, Rubbish and Waste page would not be the obvious choice for junk mail. The link explanation could be amended to include the term Waste Reduction.

Junk mail FAQs 2 3 6 No FAQ’s but good information and FAQ’s on the www.mpsonline.org.uk website.

Link to stop or more information 3 4 12 Good link to www.mpsonline.org.uk website. Add links to the Royal Mail Opt Out service. Also state that these sites have more information.

Reusable Nappies explanation 3 3 9 Basic explanation but with link to excellent http://www.realnappycampaign.com/ website. It would be useful to say this website had more information on real nappies.

Nappy FAQs 2 3 6 No FAQ’s but good information and FAQ’s on the www.realnappycampaign.com/ website.

Link to purchase or more information

3 4 12 Good phone numbers and www.realnappycampaign.com/ links. Please state that additional information is available from this site.

Smart Shopping explanation 3 2 6 Information on buying recycled goods and giving to charity shops in the reducing and recycling rubbish - a guide but no real explanation of Smart Shopping. This should be amended.

Links to opportunities and retailers 2 0 0 None.

Reuse

Explanation of reuse 2 1 2 Very limited. There needs to be a fuller explanation of reuse.

Opportunities to reuse/hints/FAQs 2 3 6

There is good information in the Re-use and recycling schemes page. However, the only apparent link to this is from the Recycling page and the link is called Recycling Schemes. This makes it unclear; change it to Re-use and recycling schemes. This page also needs a link to and from the Lambeth Reuse and Recycling Centre and Reuse and recycling centres pages.

Clothes, charity shops 2 3 6 Basic information. There is potential for a list of charity shops in the area with addresses

IT, print cartridges, phones, furniture, etc

2 4 8 Good information between the Lambeth Reuse and Recycling Centre and Reuse and recycling centres pages. However, these pages are confusing and duplicate information. The menu in


12

the Recycling page needs to be changed in the following way: Recycling banks and disposal sites should be divided into two sections called Recycling Banks and Waste Disposal, Reuse and Recycling Centres. This would save confusion. This Waste Disposal, Reuse and Recycling Centres section could then contain the Lambeth Reuse and Recycling Centre page. This page would consolidate the current information it contains with the information on Vale Street found in the Reuse and recycling centres page. This Waste Disposal, Reuse and Recycling Centres section would also contain a section called Household Waste Disposal, Reuse and Recycling Centres. This would be the current Reuse and recycling centres page with the Vale Street information removed. Both pages should have a link with an explanation that there is the alternative of the Vale Street recycling site/Cringle Dock & Smuggler’s Way Waste disposal, recycling and reuse centres. The Reducing and recycling rubbish - a guide page needs a message saying that many more things can be recycled at the recycling and reuse centres with appropriate links to these pages.

Furniture reuse projects, links and details

3 2 6

There is a link to the Lambeth Freegive Group website in the Useful Websites side bar. However there is little explanation in the text to the recycling of furniture beyond a very basic section in the Lambeth Reuse and Recycling Centre section. This should be expanded with more information, links and explanations that the Lambeth Freegive Group will take good condition goods for redistribution. This needs to be in the recycling, HWRC and Reuse and recycling schemes pages.

Links to community sector waste organisations

3 3 9 Some links in the Useful Websites side bar but little information to identify what they are for.

Community groups - legitimate organisations

1 0 0 No apparent information

Facts and Figures

Useful facts 2 2 4 Few facts. It would be good to expand on the amount recycled, the potential total and targets. These can then be tied to social, environmental and economic benefits (this is touched on in the Waste Strategy page).

Recycling Performance 2 0 0 No details. As above this needs to be corrected.

Targets 1 0 0 No targets detailed.

Other 1 0 0 None.

Press Releases

Current - ease of identification 3 1 3 Only available through the search page. A link to press releases would be beneficial. This could include a section broken down by broad topics and a recent releases list.


13

Archive - ease of use 1 2 2 The search section works well but there is no clear section as mentioned above.

Timetable of events 2 0 0 No timetable. A link to a timetable would be advantageous.

Introduction of new services 3 5 15 The Christmas Tree Collections as an example are well signposted and clear.

Surveys and Consultation

Surveys 1 4 4 Link to the London's Wasted Resource consultation is satisfactory as it ties in with a larger and possibly more useful scheme.

Consultation 1 2 2 Apart from the above survey none apparent. A system of feedback would be beneficial.

Outcomes of surveys and consultations

1 0 0 None.

Schools

Introduction and help 2 4 8 Good basic information.

Collections from schools 2 4 8 Again, good basic information.

Links to helpful resources 3 2 6 Link to the Recycle at School section of the Recycle Western Riverside website is the only link. It is also broken. This needs to be corrected and if possible further information added.

Research

Research regarding waste in the county

1 0 0 None.

Policy information and links off to more

1 4 4 Good page on Waste Strategy.

Total (Max.

800) 526/65.75%

Not Include in Scoring

Statements

Terms and conditions N

Disclaimer Y

Privacy Y

Accessibility Y


Written by: Stefan Wilczak, Get it Sorted Ltd on behalf of WRAP

Published by: Waste & Resources The Old Academy Tel: 01295 819 900 Helpline freephone Action Programme 21 Horse Fair Fax: 01295 819 911 0808 100 2040 Banbury, Oxen E-mail: [email protected] OX16 0AH www.wrap.org

Documents

Local Government Services Recycling & Waste Webpage Guidance