A council has "unreservedly apologised" after thousands of bins were left overflowing during a rocky first month for its new collection service.

Canterbury City Council - which says its operation throughout February was hampered by snow, floods and Covid staff shortages - was forced to leave rubbish uncollected as it suspended rounds.

But following a turbulent few weeks, it is now confident it has got the service "largely back on track".

A small number of homes were still behind with their collections and but were due to be prioritised by Canenco crews last week.

The newly-formed firm, which is short for Canterbury Environment Company, has taken over the reins from Serco following years of poor performance.

The council hopes its new in-house operation will provide "excellent" service for all residents - a pledge made by leader Ben Fitter-Harding.

Speaking at a full council meeting held virtually, he said: "I apologise unreservedly on behalf of the council for the disruption that occurred in February.

"There are questions to be asked about the transition period for sure, and it's my job to scrutinise that and make sure we get answers.

"I also apologise to all our residents who have had long-running problems under Serco.

"This council is committed to providing an excellent waste collection service, and with Canenco we will deliver this promise to all residents."

Canenco's struggles in icy conditions at the start of the month meant some residents were left with overspilling rubbish not collected since before Christmas.

But with everything now getting back on track, Christmas tree collections at last begun last week.

Council spokesman Rob Davies said: "It has been a difficult and challenging few weeks and we understand how frustrating and inconvenient it has been for those residents affected.

"Following incredibly hard work by our crews we have now caught up on the vast majority of missed collections from the snow and flooding and from before then when collections were badly hampered by the impact of Covid on staff numbers."

Cllr Fitter-Harding says improvements to the service will not be immediate, but predicts positive changes in the coming weeks.

"Everything is still very paper-based, but new technology is coming in the coming weeks," he said.

"That technology will go into the cabs of the lorries and connect them straight into the system which should improve rounds and missed collections.

'I apologise unreservedly on behalf of the council for the disruption...'

"Until then, we're still dependent on paper round sheets and the transition will take a little while. When it does start, it will begin with garden and food waste services, so that is where we hope to see the improvements first."

Read more: All the latest news from Canterbury