What goes in your bins and boxes
Last Updated: 26 May 2023
We collect rubbish from your home and a range of items for recycling. Find out what bins and boxes you should use.
You can also find out how to recycle or reuse items that we don't collect from your home.
- Grey general waste bin
- Green garden waste bin
- Blue recycling boxes
- Blue recycling bag
- Waste we don't collect
- Bin collection days
Grey general waste bin
For household rubbish that we don't collect for recycling.
This is reprocessed to recover the energy from the waste. The contents are sorted, dried and then turned into a refuse derived fuel.
No thanks
- hazardous waste (including gas bottles, paint and chemicals, clinical waste, syringes)
- building waste, rubble and trade waste
- aerosols can be recycled at the recycling banks in South Lakeland. Aerosols must be empty and must not be pierced or squashed, please remove the plastic top, which can be recycled in the plastic bank.
Green garden recycling bin
For green garden waste including:
- grass clippings
- weeds
- shrub prunings
- flowers, plants
- fallen leaves
- branches up to finger width
- small Christmas trees
We can't take overflowing green bins or extra bags of garden waste. You can take any extra garden waste to your local recycling centre.
No thanks
- kitchen and food waste like peelings, egg shells or used tea bags can't go in your green bin but can be composted
- branches more than finger width
- soil and stones
- treated wood
- large Christmas trees
- trade waste for recycling or disposal
Food waste requires specialist processing, which is not available in South Lakeland or the surrounding area. Westmorland and Furness Council offer discounted food waste bins.
Blue recycling boxes
For recycling paper and card, glass bottles and jars. These are sent directly for recycling and can be reprocessed within days of being collected.
Please ensure that paper and card is put in a separate box from glass bottles and jars. We will not collect any boxes that have a mix of card, paper and glass in them.
Paper and card should be clean and dry and cardboard boxes should be flattened. We will only collect cardboard and paper that is inside your blue box. Cardboard and paper that does not fit in your blue box must be taken to your local household waste recycling centre. All bottles and jars should be rinsed before collection.
We will collect:
- newspapers
- magazines
- junk mail
- leaflets
- greetings cards
- brochures
- soft-back catalogues
- telephone directories
- envelopes
- card (we can only take card that will fit in your recycling box. Larger amounts should be taken to your local tip or recycling centre)
- glass bottles and jars (lids can stay on)
No thanks
- Tetra Pak drink cartons (can go in your grey waste bin, squash cartons first)
- coffee cups
- paper towels
- tissues
- wrapping paper (can go in your grey waste bin). Due to sellotape, bows, glitter and coatings on the paper is not recyclable
- sheet glass (take window glass to your local Household Waste Recycling Centre for safe disposal)
- Pyrex
- drinking glasses
- broken glass (should be wrapped in newspaper and put into you household waste bin)
- light bulbs
Tetra Pak cartons and coffee cups will contaminate the paper and card that has been collected as they have layers that must be separated before recycling. We cannot recycle these at present. There is currently a national waste consultation that is looking at how these issues can be addressed.
Some of the major national retailers, that sell take-away coffee, have in-store recycling schemes and also encourage the use of re-usable cups. Ask in-store to see if these schemes are available.
If your recycling is not collected you will usually find a card from our team telling you why and what you need to do about it. Once you have sorted out the issue we will pick up your boxes on the next collection date.
If you would like an extra blue recycling box, you can order a new bin.
Blue recycling bag
For recycling:
- plastic bottles
- pots (but not flower pots)
- tubs and trays
- cans
- aluminium foil
- lids from bottles and jars
Please rinse and squash your plastic containers, cans and foil. The items you recycle must be empty.
If you would like an extra bag, these can be collected from South Lakeland House or Coronation Hall in Ulverston. Our recycling vehicles also normally carry a stock. The crew will be happy to provide replacement or additional items on request.
No thanks
- plastic bags
- polystyrene
- black plastic trays (these should be placed in your grey bin)
- flower pots
These are made from plastics that need specialist recycling.
Waste we don't collect
Find out how you can deal with items that we don't collect from your home including how to recycle and reuse:
Bulky waste recycling service
If you have an item of bulky waste like a sofa or fridge you may be eligible for our large household items: collection.