11 February 2026
With 40 years of waste collection and environmental services experience, we’re delighted that Steve Batchelor, Director of Consultancy Services, has chosen to spend the last six with Plan B Management Solutions (and hopefully many more to come!). In celebration of his contribution to our business, we asked him a few questions.
What is your role for Plan B Management Solutions?
Plan B Management Solutions has three business streams – Managed Services, Materials Trading, and Consultancy – I’m now the Director for Consultancy Services. My main role is to make sure my talented team has what it needs to do a great job for our clients.
Has your role changed during the six years you’ve been working with Plan B Management Solutions?
We have consciously changed the focus of the Consultancy business. The legacy business that Maz and Craig took on in 2019 was focused on providing bid support to large industry players, which accounted for around 85% of our work. Now, over 95% of what we do is with local authorities and LATCOs. We are particularly strong on service reviews, service and round design, and cost modelling, which enables us to get involved in some important and interesting projects. The depth and experience of our team means we are able to take on anything related to waste and recycling collection, operation of Household Waste Recycling Centres, street cleansing, and grounds maintenance services.
What industry issues are you currently dealing with and how do they impact the company?
There is lots going on in the sector with Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), which holds companies to account for the lifecycle of their products and packaging; the Deposit Return Scheme (DRS), a means of encouraging consumers to recycle drinks containers; and the UK Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS), the UK’s decarbonisation policy.
Simpler Recycling is also a particular focus with many councils in the process of rolling out food waste collection services by April. We’re involved in several projects to redesign services to meet the requirements of Simpler Recycling. Local Government Reorganisation (LGR), a process to replace two-tier systems with one single entity, is also a hot topic and there will be a period of aligning services once the new authorities are formed.
What challenges and opportunities do you see ahead for Plan B Management Solutions?
Three business streams means we are well placed to meet the challenges ahead. We were awarded our first collection contract with Bridgend Council in 2024. For our consultancy customers, this means we don’t just provide theoretical advice, it is underpinned by our own real-world experience.
Our Materials Trading business now has contracts with 13 local authorities and LATCOs, and has a comprehensive offer that can be tailored to meet each clients specific needs with a track record of exceeding industry benchmarks. We have built our first processing facility in Cardiff to extend our materials offer to customers, and this is currently in the commissioning phase.
Our Consultancy offer has always been a little bit different as we are able to not only offer advice and support, but, where necessary, we can roll our sleeves up and help deliver change thanks to the vast knowledge and experience within our team.
Our company values set out how we approach our work: we are flexible, transparent and honest. Rather than just undertake a project we aim to develop partnerships which deliver shared goals. Our people are passionate about the work they do and work collaboratively with our customers. Six years have flown by, and we have evolved rapidly as a business, which makes Plan B Management Solutions an exciting place to be.