Service standards

Service standards for waste and recycling collection

The council uses wheeled bins for most household waste and recycling collections. It uses larger communal bins for multi occupancy flats.

A household would normally have the following standard size bins:

Blue wheeled bin for recycling.
Green wheeled bin for residual household waste.
Brown wheeled bin for garden waste - only if they have paid for this seasonal service.

If there is a household need, residents can have an assessment to see if they qualify for a larger blue recycling bin.

Waste and recycling collections alternate between household and recycling bin collections:

Blue bin for recycling is collected one week.
Green bin for residual household waste is collected the following week.
Brown bin for garden waste is collected fortnightly. This only applies to residents who have paid for the seasonal garden waste service.

Household requirements

On the collection day, leave the correct bin at the collection point before 7.30am. The collection point is generally:

Terraced properties - in the rear lane against the wall.
Open plan estates - the edge of the pavement against the garden wall, the end of the drive or on the adjacent verge.

The householder must ensure:

All waste is in the correct wheeled bin.
The wheeled bin is placed with the handles facing the road.
The wheeled bin lid is fully closed to prevent litter and spilled waste.
The wheeled bin is taken back to the property as soon as possible after collection.

If these requirements are met, the council's waste and recycling collection service will empty the bin and return it to its collection point.

Household engagement and compliance

The waste collection team record residual waste and recycling for each collection. This provides insight about any excess and incorrect waste in household bins.

Regular occurrences of incorrect and/or excess waste in household bins will result in contact from the Waste Education Officers. The household will receive advice and support to help them maximise the use of their bins. This helps keep the streets clean and provide a safe environment.

The council reserves the right to withdraw the recycling waste collection service from any residents that continue to contaminate their recycling waste after receiving the council's support.

In all cases where any resident persists in not using their wheeled bins as required in this service standard, resulting in littering and fly tipping, the council will take formal enforcement action including the issuing of fixed penalty notices and/or any other appropriate sanction.

Missed bin collections

Domestic waste and recycling collections run from a Tuesday to a Friday. You can check when your collection day is.

Before reporting a missed bin

If you think the we may have missed your bin, please check the following first:

Was the bin at its collection point by 7.30am on the day of collection?
Was the correct bin out for collection?
Was the bin visible and accessible?
Was the bin free of any contaminated items?
Was the bin not overloaded, and the lid was closed?

Please note that on collection day, the time your bin is emptied may vary due to conditions our crews might experience on their route.

Once the crew have finished emptying the bins on your street, this will be logged in our monitoring system and marked as 'street complete' in your Waste and Recycling Requests calendar, accessible through your My Account. Any issues identified by the crew that prevent a bin from being emptied such as contamination or overloading, will also be shown in the Waste and Recycling requests calendar and you will not be able to report the bin as being missed. If there are no issues showing on your calendar for that bin, you will be able to report it as being missed.

If we were not at fault for your bin not being emptied, for example it contained contamination or was overloaded, please take your bin back onto your property and present it for emptying on the next scheduled collection date, usually two weeks after the last scheduled collection.

If you presented your bin correctly and we genuinely missed your bin, we will aim to empty it within five working days of receiving your report. Please note that the Waste and Recycling crews operate Tuesday to Friday, and bins are not collected on Mondays. While waiting for collection, please leave your bin at its usual collection point by 7.30am on these working days.

Replacement wheeled bins

All household wheeled bins remain the property of the council. However, households are responsible for looking after their bins and must take steps to keep them safe.

Replacement bins can be requested by completing the online form or call us on 0191 520 5550. Lines are open between 8.30am and 5pm, Monday to Friday.

A lost or stolen bin will be replaced free of charge. Damaged bins will be repaired wherever possible and replaced only if beyond repair.

Household bins damaged by the council will be replaced free of charge. The household will receive details of how and when the replacement wheeled bin will be delivered.

All household residual waste (green), recycling (blue) and garden waste (brown) bins are owned by the council. Any fees charged are only for the cost of processing and delivering the bin.

Additional wheeled bins

Households must be making full use of their current bins, as outlined in the service standards, before they can ask for another wheeled bin. All requests for additional wheeled bins will be subject to an assessment by the council.

Large households of 6 or more permanent residents may receive another green bin for residual waste, if they are making full use of their recycled wheeled bin. This will be subject to an assessment by the council.

Households with members receiving medical care at home may be allowed extra waste storage due to increased waste. An additional bin for medical waste must only be used for that purpose, not for regular household waste. The council will assess each case and review the arrangement regularly.

If a household keeps using the recycling bins incorrectly after getting advice and support, the council reserves the right to remove their recycling waste collection service.

In all cases, the council has the authority to issue fixed penalty notices and apply other suitable sanctions when a household fails to comply with these service standards.

Assisted collections

If no one in your household is physically able to put the bin outside of your property, you may qualify for an assisted collection. This means our waste collectors will take the bin from its usual storage spot and return it after emptying.

Our assisted collection support can be long-term to meet persistent needs, or shorter-term to aid recovery. Householders qualify for an assisted collection service if:

No one in the household is physically able to put the bin outside of the property and collect it after emptying; or
They are the sole member of the household and are suffering from a short or long-term illness or can demonstrate that they are unable to present and collect their bin.

You can apply for an assisted collection in your My Account . If the application is approved after review, the assisted collections will normally start within 14 working days. On the day of collection, the householder must ensure:

There is access to the bin from 7.30am.
Gates are unlocked.
Pets are not loose where the bin is stored and accessed/in the garden or yard.

The waste collection staff will:

Collect the bin from its normal storage space.
Take the bin to the vehicle for emptying.
Return the bin to its normal storage space.
Close any gates behind them on completing the process.

Please note, the council reviews assisted collection agreements and reserves the right to remove the service if it's no longer needed.

Household circumstances can change; and you may want to:

Request to stop the service
Change your address
Extend your agreed assisted collection period

To change your existing assisted collection arrangement only, please call 0191 520 5550. Lines are open between 8.30am and 5pm, Monday to Friday.