We collect rubbish and recycling on alternate weeks: we will collect your blue bin (or boxes) for recycling and green bin for compostable waste one week, and your black bin for non-recyclable waste the next.
Preparation for your bin collection
Collections start early, so please put your containers out by the road by 7am on the morning of collection, but no earlier than 6pm the day before.
The service updates page lists any changes to scheduled bin collections.
Only rubbish that is inside the containers will be collected; sacks or items left next to or on top of bins will not be taken. Recycling boxes will only be emptied from properties that do not have a blue bin.
Only council-issued bins, boxes or sacks will be emptied.
Please also ensure that the lids of your wheelie bins are properly closed. Overloaded or very heavy bins or boxes may not be emptied.
Please bring your containers back in as soon as possible after they have been emptied, to avoid causing obstruction on the pavement.
Frozen bins
In very cold weather the contents of green bins sometimes freeze and become stuck inside the bin. This can mean that we are unable to fully empty the bin.
There are some things that you can do to try to avoid this situation:
- Wrap food waste in paper before putting in the bin
- When your bin is empty put a piece of cardboard at the bottom before putting your food and garden waste in
- If possible, store your bin somewhere that it is less likely to freeze the day before collection, for example a garage, shed, or somewhere less exposed and out of the wind
- Before collection you could try carefully easing frozen waste away from the sides of the bin using a spade
Residents with concerns about the build-up of waste may choose to take it to the household waste recycling centres at Milton or Thriplow.
Bin collection days
Use the online bin collections search to find out when your bins will be collected.
Bin collection calendars for October 2010–September 2011 were delivered to all households with the autumn edition of Cambridge Matters magazine. They can also be downloaded from the online bin collections search
Report a missed collection
If your bin is not emptied when it should be, please check first whether:
- your bin contains items that we can not accept. You can check which items we can and can not accept here.
- this is due to a bank holiday. You can check scheduled changes to your bin collections here.
- there are unscheduled disruptions to the service (eg adverse weather). This type of disruption will be reported on the service updates page.
If none of these apply, use our online form to report a missed bin collection. You can also email our customer service centre at bins@cambridge.gov.uk or telephone 01223 458282. Please make sure you tell us your name, address and contact information.
Sack collections
Residents who do not have a place to store bins on their premises are issued with brown sacks for their compostable waste and white sacks for their general refuse.
A maximum of five white sacks or six brown sacks will be collected at one time.
Further sacks can be taken to a recycling centre.
Assisted collections
If you are unable to carry your bin or box to the kerbside, you can ask to be put on the 'collect and return' list.
The collection crew will then collect your box or bin from your property.
Email our Customer Service Centre or telephone 01223 457000 to put your name on the list.
Bulky waste collections
We can only collect rubbish that fits inside the bin with the lid closed.
If you have too much rubbish, you can take it to your nearest recycling centre.
If you would like us to collect bulky waste we can do this, although we charge for this service. Charges depend on the amount of waste to be collected.
For more information read the bulky waste page.
Contaminated bins
If any non-compostable waste (e.g. plastic, metals) is put in the green bin it will be classed as ‘contaminated’.
If non-recyclable waste (e.g. bags of refuse, nappies, building materials) is put in the blue bin or recycling box it will be classed as ‘contaminated’.
Contaminated bins will not be emptied.
This is because materials that we collect for recycling or composting need to be good quality, with as few incorrect items as possible. Some items (e.g. bricks) can also damage collection vehicles and sorting machinery.
If a bin is found to be contaminated a card will be left on the bin to explain why it was not collected. Please re-sort your rubbish into the correct bin and put back out for collection on the appropriate day.
Contact
If you are not sure about your collection day or need further information or advice about bins, please email bins@cambridge.gov.uk or telephone 01223 458282.
