Councillors have approved a controversial £115,000 wheelie bin pilot which could be rolled out across the borough at a cost of millions of pounds.

Merton Council's cabinet unanimously passed the six-month pilot for 1,200 homes in the Lavender Fields area of Mitcham at a meeting last night.

Councillor Judy Saunders, cabinet member for environmental cleanliness, said: "We have recycling bins that are quite small so because of that there's quite a lot of spillage, a lot of it gets damaged and that does have financial implications for the borough."

The decision comes despite opposition from residents and opposition councillors who fear the council could spend up to £7m on wheelie bins while services for children and adult social services face severe funding cuts.

Wheelie bad idea? Council proposes to pilot multi-million pound wheelie bin scheme

But Coun Saunders said the pilot will be a test of whether wheelie bins could save taxpayers' money through reduced landfill costs and increased income from the sale of recycled waste.

It is also a response to the council's annual residents' survey, which found satisfaction with street cleanliness has dropped to a four-year low at 54 per cent.

The Wimbledon Guardian's online poll found residents were divided down the middle on whether the council should spend millions on wheelie bins. Half of more than 250 people who responded to the poll said "it's a rubbish idea".

The other 50 per cent of respondents agreed, "I wheely hope they do it."

Research by the Tidy Britain Group in 2010 found that 50 per cent of Merton's street waste in residential roads could be attributed to the black sack and lidless recycling box collection scheme.

Households which agree to take part in the pilot, which is due to start in April, will be given two wheelie bins: one 240 litre bin for recycling and one 180 litre bin for waste - which they can keep.

The council will spend £48,000 on bins for the pilot. A further £67,000 for extra waste lorries and workmen will come from a central government recycling grant.

A cross-party scrutiny panel will review the results of the pilot and recommend whether the scheme should be rolled out across the borough.

Do you think wheelie bins are a good idea? Leave a comment below, or email Louisa on louisa.clarence@london.newsquest.co.uk.