A ward councillor has illustrated the impact the loss of Congleton's recycling centre would have on neighbouring town's tips.

Over the space of an hour and a half on Sunday, Cllr Sally Ann Holland travelled to Alsager, Macclesfield and Congleton's recycling centres to get a gauge on how busy the tips were during a third national lockdown.

The Congleton site, off Barn Road, is due to close in September 2021, as the lease on the land is up, and planning documents show Bluemantle, the owner has earmarked it to become a Costa coffee drive-through outlet.

The nearest alternative sites for residents served by Congleton HWRC are Alsager (around eight miles away) and Macclesfield (around six miles away).

Cllr Holland told Nub News: "Clearly there is something adrift with decision makers at Cheshire East and I fear they may underestimate the intelligence of our general public; we have been informed that our treasured tip us under-utilised and in line with government guidelines we can travel 20 minutes to Macclesfield or Alsager to dispose of our rubbish.

"Worth noting that Cheshire East have based their findings on data obtained during a lockdown. Surely this is wrong.

"Congleton has a growing population and is suffering at the hands of a wider authority despite having taken the lion's share of the borough's housing quota.

"It's an insult to be losing our household waste recycling centre when our already overstretched infrastructure to accommodate all the new housing is at breaking point.

"I urge every resident to sign the petition against the closure of Congleton's tip as soon as possible and if you want proof look at all the traffic building up outside all three of our household waste and recycling centres at the weekend."

A petition lodged by Congleton town councillor Paul Duffy for the retention of a site at Congleton, which has been signed by over 2,100 residents can be viewed here.