From October 1st 2019 recycling that contains contaminants will not be collected by the crews until the contaminants have been removed.

Recycling from Leicestershire (except North West Leicestershire, which is sorted at their depot in Coalville), goes to Casepak, a Materials Recycling Facility (MRF) in Leicester. Materials are sorted into the different material categories using state of the art equipment and machinery before being baled and sent on to processers for recycling.

How to present your recycling

• Empty, rinse and dry all bottles, jars and containers and place lids back on

• Flatten cardboard* and cartons – keep it dry

• Place lids back on all bottles, jars and cartons

• Items should go in loose

• All packaging should be empty

*Large pieces of neatly flattened cardboard can be left by the side of your recycling bin
For further information visit the less waste website.

What to put in your brown bin 

• Glass
  Glass bottles and jars - please make sure that they are clean
  No flat glass/mirrors/drinking glasses etc
   
• Metals
  Drinks cans and food tins
  Metal biscuit and chocolate tins
  Aerosol cans* from the kitchen and bathroom (must be empty).
  Aluminium foil (must be clean) – scrunch it up into a ball
  Foil trays (must be clean)
  No metal tubes, such as tomato puree
  No paint tins
  No cooking oil tins
  *Avoid aerosols from the garage or shed that contain hazardous materials such as WD40 or spray paint
   
• Plastics
  Plastic bottles, including from the kitchen and bathroom
  Plastic pots, tubs, trays and punnets i.e. ready meal trays (any colour except black)
  Plastic bags (not black), such as carrier bags; bread bags; salad and vegetable bags
  Plastic film, such as bubble wrap, cling film and cellophane (must be clean)
  No black plastic of any kind, including black food trays and bags
  No plastic tubes, such as moisturiser, sun cream, hand cream or toothpaste
  No hard plastic, such as coat hangers; storage boxes; children’s toys; mixing bowls; Tupperware containers
  No CDs & CD cases; video cassettes & cases
  No plastic cutlery
  No trigger sprays or pump action lids from household sprays and soaps (the bottles are fine)
  No crisp packets or other metallised plastic wrappers i.e. from sweets; chocolates; biscuits; tea bags
  No metallised food and drink pouches, such as from pet food or soft drinks
  No plastic plant pots or seed trays of any colour
  No medical blister packs (such as paracetamol packs)
   
• Cardboard
  Large corrugated cardboard boxes
  Other cardboard, such as cereal boxes and card from ready meals
  Egg boxes, toilet roll, and kitchen roll middles
  Files and folders without metal components
  Greeting cards (plain cards only, no glitter, fabric or embellishments)
   
• Cartons/ tetra paks
  Food and drink cartons, such as milk, soups etc
   
• Paper
  Newspapers, magazines, leaflets
  Catalogues and directories e.g. Yellow pages
  Office paper and envelopes
  Junk mail and envelopes
  Wrapping paper* (plain paper only, no glitter, fabric or embellishments)
  Shredded paper (place inside an open topped box such as a cereal box or paper bag to prevent the paper from blowing down the street and remember you only need to shred the part of the document that contains personal information rather than the whole document)
  No kitchen paper/ tissues
  No photographs
  No wallpaper
  *No tissue paper – this can’t be recycled
   
• Books
  Softback books and hardback books – ideally donate for reuse where possible

We are unable to recycle the following:

• Black plastic – any other colour is fine, including brown 

• Food waste – place in your general waste

• Nappies – place in your general waste

• Polystyrene - place in your general waste

• Green waste – place this in the garden waste bin

• Toys- most charity shops accept usable old toys

• CD’s and DVD’s - most charity shops accept old DVD’s and CD’s that still work

• Liquid filled Bottles- please empty, rinse and dry bottles before placing in the bin

• Wood

• Ceramics

• Ornaments

• Waste electrical or electronic equipment (WEEE) – Electrical items, batteries and light bulbs are not acceptable in the recycle bin. These need to be taken to your Recycling and Household Waste Site (RHWS) for recycling.

• Batteries – many places have special battery disposal bins, including some local supermarkets

• Certain types of paper -  kitchen paper/ tissues, photographs, wallpaper, tissue paper

• Certain metals - metal tubes (such as tomato puree), paint tins, cooking oil tins and
  Note: avoid aerosols from the garage or shed that contain hazardous materials such as WD40 or spray paint

• Crisp tubes (such as pringles)

• Textiles – these can be placed in a bag (not black) at the side of your bin. Please do not put them inside the brown bin. Alternatively, you can take them to your local charity for reuse or recycle at textile banks or your Recycling and Household Waste Site (RHWS).

If you have a mobile phone you would like to recycle visit Envirofone which is an easy way to get cash for your old mobile phone.