Wigan's tips have now shut after all!

Only hours after the local authority revealed it was bucking a trend across Greater Manchester in keeping its tips open for now, the town hall has now decided to fall into line with its neighbours and focus on bin collections.

There was confusion on Wednesday morning when it was reported that all GM tips were to be closed at the behest of Recycling for Greater Manchester, including Wigan.

But Wigan has a separate waste disposal contract - with FCC Environmental - and it said that it was carrying on as normal, particularly as there were more people at home and perhaps taking advantage of doing more DIY and gardening which would require a visit to the tip.

However, it was then decided on a change of policy and as of noon on Tuesday all of the borough's recycling centres were closed for the foreseeable future.

A Council spokesman said: "The borough’s waste and recycling centres are now closed to residents as we attempt to stop the spread of coronavirus and prioritise bin collections.

"Wigan Council continues to deploy waste collection crews as normal. Our staff are working above and beyond to support our residents during these difficult times.

"This is largely thanks to a dedicated workforce operating flexibly in their approach, together with the council’s ability to swiftly and safely redeploy resources to key frontline services.

"Given the nature of some of our work, the council has key workers that deliver essential and critical services and it’s impossible for some frontline services to not be within the community.

"We will continue to ensure key workers are provided with all the necessary protective equipment and that social distancing guidelines adhered to whenever possible.

"Residents can play their part too by observing social distancing and minimising the virus spread."