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I only have a blue bin

If you only have a blue bin, it can be used to recycle paper, card, cardboard, plastics, metals and cartons.


Blue Bin Graphic

 

Information is detailed below on what goes in your blue bin.

On your day of collection, please place your bin on the kerbside with the lid closed by 7am.

Unfortunately, we cannot take anything that is not in the bin. It is vital that all items are in the bin with the lid shut.


What can I put in my blue bin?

If you only have a blue bin, you can put all of the following items in it:

Paper

Newspapers, coloured magazines, brochures, catalogues, unwanted mail, envelopes (including those with windows), shredded paper, phone directories, yellow pages 

Clean card and cardboard

Cereal boxes, kitchen and toilet roll tubes, washing powder boxes, card sleeves from food packaging, corrugated cardboard boxes. Tip: Flatten cardboard boxes to save space.

Clean Empty Plastic Bottles

Plastic drinks, detergent and shampoo bottles. Rinse out and squash them to save space. Tip: Remove the lids and put them in the blue bin too. You can recycle clear and coloured plastic.

Clean plastic lids

Lids from plastics bottles, margarine tubs, ice cream tubs and coffee jars. Remove lids and put them in the blue bin.

Clean, empty steel and aluminium tins and cans

Tin cans, drinks cans, clean foil and foil pie/quiche trays. Make sure aerosol cans are as empty as possible and that foil and cans are not contaminated by food waste. You don't need to remove labels. Put the lids in the blue bin too.

Clean empty cardboard cartons

Juice, soup, custard and smoothie cartons. Tip: Flatten to save space and remove lids and put them in the blue bin too.

Clean, empty plastic pots

Yoghurt and pudding pots, noodle pots, ready-made soup and pasta pots.

Clean, empty plastic tubs

Ice cream, margarine tubs, ready meal tubs. Tip: Take the lids off and put them in the blue bin too.

Clean empty trays

Ready meal and microwave food trays, fruit punnets, biscuit trays. Please rinse to make sure they are not contaminated by food waste.

Clean, empty plastic bags

Clean carrier bags, bread bags, pre-packed vegetable bags, cereal and pasta bags. Tip: Please don't put anything inside plastic bags, it prevents them being separated at the recycling facility.

 

What should NOT go in my blue bin?


Top tips for blue bins:

  • Everything must be clean and dry - wet and dirty materials such as food and drinks waste, nappies and pet waste, spreads through the whole load and means it will be rejected and landfilled.
  • If your blue bin contains items in black bin bags or plastic bags it will not be collected.
  • Please try not to compact the material in your bin, this can result in your bin being half emptied on collection day.  If your bin is not fully emptied due to the material being compacted, or frozen together in winter months, it is your responsibility to loosen the material ready for your next scheduled collection. No additional collection will be provided for half emptied bins.
  • Please ensure that your bin is not too heavy as this can result in the bin lip snapping and the bin falling when lifted onto the lorry. This is dangerous for collection staff.  If your bin is deemed to be too heavy it will not be emptied and it is your responsibility to ensure items are removed so that the bin can be emptied on the next collection day.  No additional collections will be provided for bins which are considered to be too heavy. 

Frequently Asked Questions