Lockable bins - to stop arsonists

The locked up bins in Furnace Road

New lockable storage means that wheelie bins belonging to the flats on Furness Road are now secure from fire.

Diligent fire safety officers in the borough recognised the potential fire threat of unsecured waste bins being placed in front of residents’ windows on the ground floor. They immediately sought to investigate a possible solution.

Working with Rochdale Borough Council, Rochdale Boroughwide Housing and their social landlords in Middleton the fire hazards have now been minimised and residents’ safety has been greatly improved.

Glyn O’Reilly, Fire Service Liaison Officer for Rochdale Borough, said: “This is a great example of how a problem can be easily resolved by partners working together to find appropriate solutions. Residents’ are not only protected from potential fires but the new secure storage for everyone’s waste means that the wheelie bins can no longer be stolen for antisocial behaviour activity such as criminal damage or starting fires.”

On behalf of Rochdale Boroughwide Housing, Debbie Hopwood, Principal Housing Manager for Middleton and Heywood commented: ”The safety of the residents of Furness Road was paramount and all agencies co-operated fully to ensure that a speedy solution to the problem was achieved.

The council and the fire service hope to work with other social landlords in the borough to introduce similar storage across the borough. This work is part of the council and fire service’s commitment to reduce the number of unnecessary fires across the borough and to protect local communities.