Recycling and waste management group Sita has told staff at its Lenwade plant that their jobs could be lost early this year. The Maidenhead-based firm last week sent letters to employees at its depot north west of Norwich, launching a consultation over job losses.

Recycling and waste management group Sita has told staff at its Lenwade plant that their jobs could be lost early this year.

The Maidenhead-based firm last week sent letters to employees at its depot north west of Norwich, launching a consultation over job losses.

The site employs some 75 people working on recycling mainly scrap metal.

It is understood just under 20 jobs are at risk, including drivers, office and yard staff.

A spokesman for the firm said: “I am afraid this stage all that we can say is that we are in consultation with a number of employees at the depot but we are not in a position to confirm numbers.”

Staff at the firm, who did not want to be named, said 18 jobs were at risk, eight yard staff, six drivers and five office workers, but that the firm was still making use of contractors.

The Lenwade depot, originally called Easco, was sold by Andre Surruys' firm SPC Holdings in May 2007 to Sita for £93million.

Easco was set up in Watton in 1984 before moving to Lenwade in 1995 and employed about 300 people at 13 recycling sites at the time of the buyout.

SITA UK, set up in 1988, works for the public and private sector and currently has about 5,000 employees at more than 300 locations in the UK.

In 2006 it generated a turnover of £600 million.

The firm is a subsidiary of French utilities giant Suez Environment with 62,000 employees.