Your blue bin should be used for all recyclable material and your green bin for compostable household waste.
Your black bin should only be used for items that cannot be recycled or turned into compost.
If you want to print the information on this page, this handy recycling poster lets you know exactly what you can put in the different bins, and includes pictures.
Blue bin
This information also applies to recycling boxes of any colour if you do not have a blue bin.
Yes please
- all paper and card (except when shredded – put this in the green bin)
- envelopes, including window envelopes)
- Cardboard
- phone books and catalogues
- food tins and drink cans
- sweet or biscuit tins
- aerosol cans
- clean foil and foil trays
- metal lids from jars (please remove from jars)
- glass bottles and jars
- plastic bottles, including drinks, shampoo and detergent bottles – no lids please
- drink or soup cartons, eg Tetra Pak)
No thanks
- any plastic items that are not bottles, eg tubs, pots, trays, bags and wrappers
- envelopes containing bubble wrap, eg Jiffy bags
- shredded paper
- wood, plasterboard, sand and other building materials
- food or garden waste
- lids from plastic bottles
- Pyrex, plate glass, glass dishes or light bulbs
- saucepans and other metal items not listed under 'Yes please'
- foil-lined plastic pouches, eg pet food sachets
- crisp packets
- clothes and textiles
- motor-oil and pesticide containers
- sanitary items and nappies
- sacks of mixed rubbish
Green bin
This information also applies to brown sacks if you do not have a green bin.
Yes please
- All food waste – cooked, raw, dairy, meat and bones (please wrap in paper)
- grass and plant material
- untreated wood and sawdust
- shredded paper
No thanks
- non-compostable items
- plastic bags
- corn starch or biodegradable plastic bags
- sanitary items and nappies
- soil or stones
- painted or treated wood
- cat or dog waste
- drink, milk and soup cartons, eg Tetra Pak
Black bin
This information also applies to white sacks if you do not have a black bin.
Yes please
- items that cannot be put into a blue or green bin for recycling or composting
No thanks
- rubble
- bricks
- soil
- very heavy items, eg television
