Recycle it right!

We all like to recycle as much as we can but do you know what rubbish should go where? Bottles and jars, for example should go in your grey-lidded brown bin. But don't bag your recyclables before binning or they won't be recycled! Did you know that all our recycling is sorted by hand to make sure that as much waste as possible is recycled? Find out below what rubbish should go in which bin.   

You can also find out your bin collection dates by using our online postcode finder tool. All you need to do is type in your postcode below and click 'Check my bin day' below.

Please remember to have your bin out for collection by 7am and be aware that severe weather may affect our collections.

Garden waste collections will be on the same day as your recycling bin - but at a different time.

• Green bins - household waste
• Brown bins with grey lid - dry recyclables
• Brown bins - garden waste

Check my bin day - Enter your postcode

You can now find out your bin collection dates for the year ahead, including Christmas and Bank Holidays by using our new online postcode finder tool. All you need to do is type in your postcode below and click 'Check my bin day' below.

All your collection details will be provided; you can also download your bin collection calendar for the next 12 months here.

Recycling your used or unwanted cooking oil

 Click here to download the list of items that you can and can't take to the Redfield Road Household Waste & Recycling Centre [64kb]. You can now take your used or unwanted cooking oil there as well.

Recycling information

As well as collecting household waste for residents within the city boundary, the Council also offers recycling collections for plastic, paper and card, garden waste, glass and food waste.

Unfortunately, not all of our recycling services are currently available to all households. If you would like to know which recycling service is available in your area then please call our Waste Management team on 0115 915 2000.

Useful guidelines

• You shouldn't put your bin out any earlier than 4pm the day before your collection day or leave them out later than 8am the day after
• Please do not put your bin out more than eight hours before collection and bring it in no more than eight hours after it has been emptied
• Wheeled bins can be used as a tool for burglary or fire. Bringing your bin back in promptly will help to prevent this
• Please make sure your bin is presented safely and it does not cause an obstruction
• Please place the bin by the kerbside of your home, or at the agreed point
• If we miss your collection, let us know and we will come back within 24 hours

Green bin 

Most homes have a green bin for their household rubbish. Depending on the recycling service you have this bin will either be collected once a week or once every two weeks, on the same week day.

Yes please Any household waste that cannot be put out as part of your recycling collections.

No thanks Bricks Rubble Soil or large items

Brown bin with grey lid

More than 100,000 properties now have a grey-lidded brown bin for the collection of plastic, paper, tins and cardboard. We will collect recycling and composting one week and the remainder of your waste (in the green bin) the following week.

Yes please Catalogues and brochures Paper Food and drink cans Plastic bottles Aerosols Newspapers and magazines Cardboard Large tins Plastic tubs, pots and trays Telephone directories Glass bottle and Jars

No thanks Bagged waste Foil lined juice and milk cartons Paper tissue Sticky labels Plastic carrier bags Cling film Foil Wallpaper Polystyrene Textiles Mirrors Light bulbs Pyrex Window panes

Brown bin with brown lid - garden waste 

The brown bin with a brown lid is used to collect garden waste. If you do not have a brown bin and you would like one, please contact the Waste Management Team to order a bin. Brown bins can only be delivered to customers who already have a recycling collection. Garden waste collections take place every two weeks on the same day as your recycling collection. Collections start again in April 2013.

Yes please Grass cuttings Hedge clippings Twigs & small branches Leaves & weeds Dead flowers Small amounts of potting compost (not bags)

No thanks Bagged garden waste Plant pots Plastic bags Large amounts of soil or grass sods Animal waste Treated wood Bricks and rubble Organic food waste

Orange "Survival" Bag

Selected homes that could not use the grey-lidded brown bins - flats, communal dwellings and hard to recycle premises - can now use the specially provided orange 'survival' bags to recycle much of their household waste. The bag survives being compressed in the bin lorry intact, so that our recycling facility can retrieve and recycle their contents. All you have to do is place your recyclable items into the orange bag, secure it, and place it in your normal rubbish container along side your other bagged non-recyclable waste.

Yes please Aerosols Plastic Tubs & Trays Papers Newspapers Plastic Bottles Tins  Cardboard Telephone directories Food Cans

No thanks  Glass Foil lined juice and milk cartons Paper tissue   Plastic carrier bags Foil Wallpaper Polystyrene Textiles

For more information on where you can recycle go to http://www.recycle-more.co.uk and fill in your postcode in the bank locator. This will provide you with a list and map of all your local recycling sites and what can be taken there.

Please also click here to visit the Bin collection FAQs page.