Current news
For applications to place a structure/equipment within the highway, please see: Information and guidance and Apply for a structure licence.
National Highways and Transport (NHT) public satisfaction survey parish consultation
Deadline extended to give feedback on the National Highways and Transport (NHT) public satisfaction survey parish consultation to Friday 16 January 2026.
Leicestershire County Council has participated in the annual National Highways and Transport (NHT) Public Satisfaction Survey since 2008. The survey supports the council’s continued effort to understand and respond to the needs of residents. By analysing the results, we can monitor its performance on highway and transport issues at a local level, by identifying trends and benchmarking.
The survey is overseen by a company called, Measure 2 Improve (m2i) who also offer an additional Public Representatives Survey to supplement their findings.
The Public Representative Survey is designed to accept one response from each parish council, so we would ask that although the questionnaire is best completed by one person, the responses should represent the overall views of the parish council on the matters raised in the survey.
NHT Public Representative Survey
If you need help in completing the survey, please phone Cassandra Haywood on 0116 305 0504.
We encourage you to complete the survey online, but you can also download a copy to print and complete:
Parish council paper responses can be posted to:
Cassandra Haywood
Room 700
County Hall
Glenfield, Leicestershire,
LE3 8RJ
or completed and scanned copies of the survey can be emailed to: cassandra.haywood@leics.gov.uk
Please complete the survey by the later deadline of Friday 16 January 2026. However, if your parish meeting falls outside of this time, please phone Cassandra Haywood on 0116 305 0504 and we will do our best to accommodate a later return date.
Your participation and support in this survey will help inform the continuous improvement of Highways and Transportation and it's very much appreciated.
Public Rights of Way maintenance volunteers
Leicestershire County Council is currently looking for volunteers who enjoy being out in the countryside and can help with some of the practical jobs needed to maintain footpaths, bridleways and byways across the county. We would support you with training and ask you to assist on tasks identified throughout the County by the Rights of Way Inspectors. Your work would contribute towards keeping the rights of way network open and easy to use.
Our next induction day will be on Monday 2 February 2026 at 2 pm, County Hall, Glenfield, Leicestershire, LE3 8RJ. If you or anyone you know are interested in joining our group of enthusiastic and friendly volunteers, please register at Public Rights of Way Maintenance Volunteer.
About this role
Volunteer role: Public Rights of Way Maintenance Volunteer
Volunteer manager: Staff Volunteer Manager
Where you'll be based: Opportunities all around the county
Why we want you
As a Rights of Way Maintenance Volunteer you'll assist in the maintenance and upkeep of the public footpaths, bridleways and byways across Leicestershire. Your voluntary work will contribute towards providing local walkers, riders and visitors to the county with a better experience whilst using the rights of way network throughout the Leicestershire countryside.
What you'll be doing:
- Tasks as specified by the Rights of Way Inspectors
- Cutting back overhanging vegetation from stiles, gates, waymark posts and fingerposts
- Cutting back surface vegetation and overhanging trees and hedgerows
- Cleaning Footpath signposts and waymark discs
- Re-erecting or re-painting fallen or damaged waymark posts
- Clearing and tidying the surface of steps and bridges
- Path surveys and taking photographs
The skills you need:
- Keen and active walker or rider
- An interest in the maintenance of public rights of way
- Good map reader
What's in it for you:
- Training and support on the legal and practical aspects of rights of way maintenance
- Team working
- Practical skills
- Enhance your communication skills, record keeping and reporting
- Access to the Leicestershire County Council learning platform
- Keeping active
Disclaimer
Volunteers will need to be able to travel throughout the county. Use for volunteering will be required on your car insurance. Any expenses must be discussed and approved in advance. All tasks will be carried out in groups of two or more and with the use hand tools only.
Support the Environment Action Volunteer Scheme
We would appreciate your support in calling on residents to step forward and make a difference by joining our team of Environment Action Volunteers (EAVs).
We currently have a team of 55 EAVs who support the delivery of the council’s environmental priorities, however we need more passionate individuals from all parts of the county to help inspire positive change in their communities.
EAVs perform a wide range of tasks including:
- educating and persuading others to reduce household waste, recycle more effectively, and to compost garden waste at home
- conserving nature and taking steps to boost biodiversity
- encouraging residents to make use of active travel options such as walking, wheeling, and public transport
EAVs give their time to take part in a wide range of activities, including:
- running stalls at public events
- delivering talks, assemblies, workshops, and webinars
- creating content for social media and newsletters
- supporting online campaigns
- supporting the parish councils to manage green spaces with biodiversity in mind and tackling invasive non-native species
- supporting the delivery of e-bike training courses
We welcome applications from:
- Leicestershire residents aged 18 or over (excluding Leicester City and Rutland)
- people from all backgrounds with an interest in the environment, waste, nature, and sustainable travel
No prior experience is necessary as full training will be given. However, it is essential to have the time and capacity to volunteer and it is beneficial to have an interest in the topics that are covered by the scheme.
By volunteering, you can:
- make a real impact in your community
- meet like-minded people
- gain new skills and experience
Upcoming training dates
We are now accepting applications - find out about becoming an Environment Action Volunteer and apply
Successful applicants will be invited to participate in a face-to-face training session on Saturday 13 December 2025 (9 am to 4 pm), at County Hall in Glenfield.
Recycle and reuse this Christmas
Did you know that between December and early January, UK households collectively produce up to 30% more waste than at any other time of year. We use a staggering 300,000 tonnes of cardboard in our homes during the festive season, throw out a billion cards and cut down around 50,000 trees to make enough paper to wrap our presents, the equivalent of 108 million rolls of wrapping paper. We purchase eight million Christmas trees every year, producing 12,000 tonnes of green waste and spend £25 on average per household on Christmas decorations: over £660 million in total.
Food waste also increases by a similar amount and collectively we end up throwing away 230,000 tonnes of Christmas food, half of which is still edible.
This extra volume often leads to increased contamination in our recycling as we rush to clear our festive waste and the cost of waste disposal is higher too.
With household costs spiralling, many of us are keen to keep a careful watch on our spending, and so it’s worth considering if there’s a better way.
We have plenty of guidance to help you enjoy the festivities, keep waste to a minimum and still keep your finances on track:
- Let’s waste less at Christmas | Lesswaste
- Let’s waste less food at Christmas | Lesswaste
- Festive items, reuse or recycle | Lesswaste
- Packing Christmas away | Lesswaste
And remember:
- Cardboard - empty boxes, remove excess tape, flatten before recycling and keep it dry!
- Bottles, jars and containers - empty, rinse and drain before placing any lids back on
- Foil and foil trays – must be clean and can then be scrunched together into a ball
- All packaging should be empty, and items should go in loose (all items separate)
- No batteries or electrical items should go in any kerbside bin - find your nearest collection point | Recycle your electricals
See items accepted for recycling | Lesswaste for further guidance on what you can recycle.
Road safety round of the Police and Crime Commissioner Community Action Fund (CAF) opens 17 November
This round offers parish and town councils, community groups, charities, voluntary organisations and others, grants of up to £10,000, to support road safety initiatives. Further details can be found at Community Action Fund (Police and Crime Commissioner LLR).
As you begin planning your applications, please be aware that any asset placed on the public highway must have formal permission from Leicestershire County Council before installation. Details of this can be found at Apply to place a structure or equipment within the highway.
Please do not apply until Monday 17 November when the Road Safety application will be live – the deadline for applications is Monday 12 January 2026.
Please share this with any community groups, charities, voluntary organisations, grassroots groups, and schools that may be eligible to apply.
Festive decoration application (Section 178)
If you are proposing to erect any festive decorations over, along or across the highway this coming season, you will need to apply for a licence under Section 178 of the Highways Act 1980. All applications must be submitted before the end of October to have the licences in place for December.
You can apply for a S178 Licence by completing this online form.
As part of the application process, you will be required to provide evidence that the column is safe and fit for purpose for the specific loads required, this is done by having the asset structurally tested.
If there are any unofficial attachments (i.e. flags) on the Leicestershire County Council owned streetlights that you are hoping to use for your festive display, these can be removed by Leicestershire County Council (at our expense).
The Road Safety Round of the Community Action Fund (CAF) opens on Monday 17 November. This round offers parish & town councils, community groups, charities, voluntary organisations etc. grants of up to £10,000 to support road safety initiatives and the details are shared in the email below from Rebecca Lee, Community Grants Officer, Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner.
As you begin planning your applications, please be aware that any asset placed on the public highway must have formal permission from Leicestershire County Council before installation, details of this can be found on the Apply to place a structure or equipment within the highway page.
Please do not apply until Monday 17 November when the Road Safety Application has gone live. More details can be found on Community Action Fund | PCC. Deadline for applications is Monday 12 January 2026. Please share this with any community groups, charities, voluntary organisations, grassroots groups, and schools that may be eligible to apply.
Recycling and waste
As of the 1 October all waste sites will return to their standard winter opening times which is 9 am - 4 pm.
All details regarding opening times/days are available at Waste and recycling. The council continues to encourage residents to avoid busy periods such as weekends, especially bank holiday weekends, and to check the council’s website before setting off.
Illegal parking Report it form
We now have a way for customers to report illegal parking online, see Parking enforcement. This is to improve the way parking is reported.
Composting workshops
Find out about future composting workshops. These workshops are free and open to any Leicestershire resident who is keen to start composting at home or wanting to further their knowledge. Please share this information with colleagues, friends and family who are Leicestershire residents.
Community Speed Watch 2025
Community Speed Watch (CSW) is an educational scheme run by Leicestershire County Council in association with Leicestershire Police to help residents reduce speeding traffic through their community. The scheme enables your volunteers to work within their community to raise awareness of the dangers of speeding and to help control the problem and reduce danger locally.
If you're interested or for more information, please see Community Speed Watch.
Muddy roads
Farming work is an important part of our rural economy in Leicestershire, but ongoing poor weather conditions can make it difficult for farmers to avoid leaving trails of mud on roads throughout the autumn and winter months.
Muddy roads can be difficult for road users, and we want to reassure you that the National Farmers’ Union regularly provides advice on this issue to farmers directly. They encourage the use of ‘Slippery Road Surface’ and ‘Mud on Road’ warning signs, cleaning vehicles before driving them on public routes, as well as including road sweeping and cleansing in their routine ploughing, spraying and harvesting operations.
Where required, district councils will cleanse muddy roads as part of their environmental duties. The county council may provide additional warning signage for motorists when needed and may even serve notice to those who continually muddy roads as a last resort, as well as recovering expenses incurred, in line with the Highways Act 1980.
If you notice a muddy road which has not been cleansed in your area, please contact us via Report a road problem online form or by email cscparishes@leics.gov.uk so that an assessment can be carried out.
Battery recycling campaign
We need your help to reduce the risk of serious fires by encouraging battery recycling. Where possible, please raise awareness of the following key messages:
- Always recycle batteries and electrical items separately from other types of waste.
- Batteries and unwanted electrical items should not go into kerbside recycling collections, unless there is a dedicated separate kerbside collection service for these items – please check with your local district council.
- Find suitable recycling points near you.
- Recycle your batteries and electrical items at Recycling and Household Waste Sites across Leicestershire.
More and more everyday items such as children’s toys, wireless headphones, mobile phones, laptops, electric toothbrushes and disposable vapes contain non-removable batteries. These batteries can become crushed or damaged in bin lorries or at waste sites if they are not recycled appropriately and can lead to fires which are hazardous, environmentally harmful and which cause costly damage and disruption to waste systems and infrastructure.
When crushed or damaged, lithium-ion batteries can be especially dangerous to the public, waste operators and firefighters as they cause fires that are very challenging to tackle. They can lead to explosions and chemical exposure. Once ablaze these batteries can keep reigniting; prolonging incidents with smoke and fumes affecting the air quality of neighbouring areas and communities, sometime for long periods of time.
As the rise of portable battery-powered devices leads to more lithium-ion batteries ending up in the bin, the number of fires caused by batteries in waste has increased accordingly:
- There were 700 fires caused by batteries in the UK waste system in 2022, and 1,200 in 2023 an increase of 71%.
- 1.6 billion batteries were thrown away in the UK over the last year; over 3,000 a minute, including over 1.1 billion electrical items containing hidden lithium-ion batteries.
- The National Fire Chiefs Council says that “Fires involving lithium-ion batteries are a disaster waiting to happen”.
Research by Material Focus (an environmental campaign group) revealed that last year, UK residents binned at least 24 batteries per year on average, including 15 electrical items containing batteries and nine loose batteries per year. This included 260 million disposable vapes.
Nearly half of the UK adults involved in this research did not know or had not heard that electrical items containing chargeable built-in batteries can catch fire if crushed or damaged, or that these batteries / electrical items therefore need to be disposed of or recycled separately to other types of waste.
Find out more information about never binning batteries and how to recycle batteries from Less Waste.
If you have any queries, please contact wasteprevention@leics.gov.uk
Local Transport Plan 4
The councils current Local Transport Plan, LTP3, is coming to an end in 2026, and no longer accords with national planning, transport, and environmental policies. It also has a limited focus on health and well-being and the potential benefits that active travel provides Leicestershire for local communities. We have taken the decision to update it with a new Local Transport Plan which will know as LTP4.
For more information visit Local Transport Plan.
The Environment and Transport Department is also working to develop supporting strategies, including Leicestershire Highway Design Guide, Electric Vehicle Strategy and Cycling and Walking Strategy which allow more opportunities for you to feed in your thoughts and views.