COUNCIL tax bills have reduced for residents in the Cotswolds thanks to a waste collection company set up two years ago.

Since Ubico Ltd was set up by Cotswold District and Cheltenham Borough Councils in 2012 to cut running costs for both authorities, it has outperformed its combined savings target of £700,000.

And the service is now hoping to save £5million in its first five years of operation.

Councillor Lynden Stowe, Cotswold District Council leader, said the new service had saved a lot more than they had thought it would initially.

“We knew that creating the company, in partnership with our colleagues at Cheltenham, would probably yield dividends but Ubico have done spectacularly well," said Cllr Stowe.

"Not only did they enable us to introduce kerbside plastic recycling in this district for the very first time, they also generated considerable savings which have helped us to reduce our share of Council Tax bills and freeze prices for parking, green waste collections and leisure until at least 2016."

Rob Bell, Ubico Managing Director, said: “We were aiming to save just over £500,000 for the two partner authorities in 2012-13 but we managed to reduce costs in that year by almost £1.3 million.

“Our relatively seamless transition to new working arrangements when we first launched was a key factor in boosting our efficiency, and our employees have continued to function very effectively across both districts.”