A DEAL to effectively privatise bin collections across the whole of south Worcestershire has moved a step closer - after council chiefs in Wychavon gave it their backing.

The district council's Conservative leadership has endorsed a plan to hive off bin rounds to a private firm by 2017 in a bid to save a combined £1.6 million a year.

The decision follows backing from councils in Worcester and Malvern, and means the hunt for the preferred company can now kick off.

It was given the nod by Wychavon District Council's executive board despite a challenge from a member of the public, who said there are still unanswered questions.

Resident Michael Worrall pointed out that Wychavon's refuse collection service is more expensive than Worcester, despite it already being provided by a private firm.

"In 2013/14 Wychavon's external service cost £56 per household while Worcester's in-house service was only £44 per household, having reduced its costs by 20 per cent since 2011/12," he said.

But Councillor Emma Stokes, the cabinet member responsible for the environment, told him the city's urban make-up gave it an advantage.

"Worcester is a compact urban location with short distances between properties, the rural nature of Wychavon inevitably means the amount of resources required to collect waste is much greater," she said.

She also told him the "market reality" is that all three councils are intent on trying to secure a deal - even if it came from some kind of public consortium.

"The market reality is that if a bidder, private or public consortium, is able to demonstrate value for money and a high quality service then it will be considered as part of the procurement process," she said.

During the debate Liberal Democrat Councillor Charles Tucker said he "regretted" the fact the proposal doesn't go further and consider a unified deal involving waste disposal, which is handled by Worcestershire County Council.

During the meeting it also emerged that £50,000 of the authority's cash has been put aside to fund the recruitment process, which will be added to the £200,000 from Worcester City Council.

Wychavon already outsources its refuse service to a firm called FCC Environmental but that deal expires in 2017, giving it an ideal window to strike a new combined deal between all three areas from September of that year.

The deal would implicate the jobs of 111 city council staff, with most jobs expected to transfer over to the private provider.