Consultation with the RNIB (Royal National Institute for the Blind) has helped Plastic Omnium develop a special bin to aid visually impaired householders to segregate and recycle their waste.

The waste and recycle scheme was first introduced in June last year. Although using Braille to identify different bins was considered by Plastic Omnium, the RNIB was consulted to advise on other options. Peter McCann from Plastic Omnium explained:

"The RNIB told us that only a few of those registered disabled are actually blind and even fewer read Braille. Besides, who wants to have to run their hands all over a bin every time they empty out their rubbish?

"So we chose different coloured and shaped lids as well as Braille to ensure we responded to every type of visual impairment.

"The real beauty of these new bins is that they help everyone segregate and recycle more. Everyone can associate the colours with different types of waste - black for residual, green for garden, and blue for cans and plastics.

"Blackpool Council is the only local authority we know of to recognise the very specific needs of some of its residents - it's a real breakthrough for a local authority to take this responsibility on and we're confident these new bins will help them as they continue improving their recycling rates," he added.

Sibonne Brewster from the RNIB said: "We feel the system is a simple and positive way of improving access for the blind and partially sighted people and it is very encouraging that these steps have been taken."

With support from Onyx, approximately 8,000 bins are collected and emptied on a daily basis for Blackpool Council's residents.

Paul Taylor, Head of Streetscene at Blackpool Council, said: "The speed at which the new system has been implemented has been fantastic. More than 40,000 households are now on the scheme, so you can imagine the complexity of the implementation programme for Plastic Omnium and Onyx.

"It's gone relatively smoothly, however, and our recycling rates are continuing to rise as a result of this programme of segregation."