A HUGE response from residents to a new bulk waste collection service has forced Bury Council to temporarily put up a "full up" sign.

The council has suspended bookings for the next few weeks after it was bombarded with countless inquiries for the free service, which enables residents to get rid of up to six items at any one time. Bookings are now full until May.

Bury Council's operational services officer, Mike Lord, said: "We anticipated there would be a lot of initial demand for the bulky waste service, especially during the first few weeks of its introduction.

"That has proved to be the case but we are confident that, after the service has been operating for a few months, things will quickly settle down.

"In order to assist this process, we are not taking any more bookings for the time being. Householders will be notified as soon as the service is about to resume."

The streamlined household refuse collection, which no longer involves Monday pick-ups, has also kicked in successfully, say council officers.

The new Tuesday to Friday regime of refuse collection, introduced to finally end the problems caused by Bank Holiday Mondays, met with some minor difficulties during the first week, mainly through confusion over changes to the collection day for some residents.

Householders have also been reminded to use the kerbside waste paper collection service.

Anyone still experiencing difficulties or requiring further information, should contact 253 5353.