Household Waste Collections

• Waste and Recycling Consultation

South Bucks District Council provides a property boundary refuse and recycling collection service for all domestic properties in the district. We also run various waste minimisation and recycling initiatives including the provision of local recycling centres and discounted compost bins. This page explains household rubbish collections, for more information on recycling and other services please choose from the links below.

• Recycling Collections
• Kitchen and Garden Waste Collections
• Find your Collection Day
• Bulky Waste
• Recycling Centres
• Service Standards
• Provision of Black Sacks FAQ's

Household Rubbish
We provide the majority of properties in the district with a weekly black sack refuse collection. Approximately a fifth of the district has been provided with wheelie bins for the fortnightly collection of rubbish and kitchen and garden waste. For more information on this service see kitchen and garden waste collections.

How to ensure your rubbish will be collected
We will collect all securely bagged rubbish that is presented correctly by 7am on the day of collection. Residents should ensure their rubbish can be collected by doing the following:

• Leave all rubbish at the property boundary or alternative collection point as specified by this council, before 7am on the morning of collection and no earlier than 5.00 pm. the night before. Your property boundary is where your front path or driveway meets the public pavement or road. If you have electrically operated gates, your refuse and recycling should be placed outside of the gates. If you live on a private road or in a remote area, we may need to specify an alternative collection point for you. If you are unsure where your collection point is please call the Environment Unit on 01895 837333.
• Properly contain all rubbish in sealed or tied refuse sacks, not supermarket bags. We do not provide refuse sacks to residents, these can be purchased in any supermarket and many small shops. Please reduce the risk of bags splitting by purchasing strong bags.
• Do not overfill refuse sacks. Sacks that are too heavy can split and may be too heavy to lift into the collection vehicle; if our crews are unable to lift a bag safely they will not collect it.
• Do not use a wheelie bin, unless you are in an area that receives a Kitchen and Garden Waste Collection Service. We are unable to guarantee the collection of waste if presented in wheelie bins as our collection crews have to empty them by hand and may only be able to ‘skim’ the surface. Instead please use a traditional style dustbin to contain your refuse sacks so that they can be emptied by the collectors.
• Do not place restricted items in your refuse. Household rubbish collection is for the day to day rubbish generated from living within the house such as kitchen waste, food packaging and nappies etc. This does not include hazardous waste such as batteries, light bulbs or broken glass, garden waste or DIY waste; a full list of restricted items is given below. Up to 60% of household rubbish can be recycled. Please visit the recycling collections page to find out what you can recycle at home.

Assisted Collections
If you are physically unable, due to disability or infirmity, to place your recycling or refuse at your property boundary on your collection day please contact us on 01895 837333 to discuss an assisted collection.

Restricted Items: The following must not be put out for collection with your refuse and alternative arrangements should be made.

	Batteries - Batteries are classed as hazardous waste and must NOT be disposed of in your general refuse. From 1st February 2010 retailers selling over 32kg of batteries a year must provide free in store recycling points for all standard, button cells, mobile and laptop batteries. Alternatively you can take them to your nearest household waste recycling centre.
	Bulky Waste - Unwanted bulky household items e.g. fridges, freezers, beds, TV’s etc. can be collected by us. This service costs £33.50 (including VAT) for up to 5 items unless certain benefits are claimed. The items will be collected within 7 working days. This does not include house-clearances or building (including DIY) materials. For more information or to request a bulky waste collection, visit the bulky waste page. Many charities are interested in furniture that is in good condition to pass on to people who can make use of it. Residents should contact these organisations first before ringing the Council, because everything collected by the Council will go to landfill. See the re-use or recycle bulky waste page.
	Clinical Waste – Clinical waste is a separate, free collection service which collects items such as colostomy and dialysis bags, surgical waste and syringes. Your district nurse will contact us to arrange this service if you need it. Incontinence pads are not classified as clinical waste and can be placed into your refuse bin.
	Commercial/Trade Waste – It is the responsibility of the trader or company concerned to have a commercial refuse agreement with a licensed waste disposal company. If you arrange for someone else to take your waste away you have a legal duty of care to make sure they are registered with the Environment Agency   and that they hold a valid waste carriers licence, otherwise if the waste is later found to be disposed of illegally you can be held liable or prosecuted. Please see the commercial waste page for further details.
	Dangerous Items – Refuse sacks are collected by hand and any broken glass or sharp objects, including panes of glass, can cause injury to our collection crews. Please place broken items in a cardboard box by the side of your refuse so that our crews can see them and dispose of them safely. Panes of glass should be taken to your local household waste recycling centre.
	Dog Faeces - must be mixed with domestic waste and presented in a strong, securely tied refuse sack. We are unable to collect bags containing only dog waste for operational and environmental health reasons.
	Electrical Items - unwanted electrical and electronics such as TV’s, computers, irons, curling tongs, kitchen appliances etc contain valuable raw materials and can be recycled. For example, one iron contains enough steel to produce 13 steel cans. Please take them to your nearest household waste recycling centre to be recycled or request a bulky collection. Items that are still in working order can be reused through organisations such as the British Heart Foundation . The Royal Mail have a recycling campaign called ‘Simply Drop’ for very small electrical such as cameras, mobile phones and MP3 players, find out more at Simply Drop . See the re-use or recycle bulky waste page for more details.
	Garden waste – Garden waste is not collected with refuse, please compost this at home or take it to your local household waste recycling centre; for more details see the garden and food waste page. Alternatively the Council’s contractors, Biffa Municipal Ltd, can collect garden waste for disposal to landfill for a small charge. Please ring 01494 763085 for more details. This is a direct arrangement between residents and Biffa Municipal Ltd. Residents on kitchen and garden waste collections should place garden waste into their green bin.
	Hazardous Waste – Asbestos is highly toxic and must not be put out with your refuse for environmental health reasons. If you wish to dispose of this waste please contact Buckinghamshire County Council on 01296 395000 and ask for the waste department. Fluorescent lamps and energy saving light bulbs are also classed as hazardous waste and must not be placed into your refuse. Please take them to your nearest household waste recycling centre to be recycled.
	Liquid Waste - Paints, oils and garden chemicals are hazardous liquid waste and must not be put out with your refuse. They must also not be poured down the sink or drain as they can cause pollution in watercourses or cause damage to your property. Please take liquid waste to your local household waste recycling centre to be recycled or disposed of correctly. Non hazardous liquids such as sour milk, pickling vinegar and semi liquid food like yoghurt can be tipped down your sink or drain.
	Plumbing, building and DIY materials – including plasterboard, kitchen units, tins of paint and built-in wardrobes can be taken to your nearest household waste recycling centre or consult your local telephone directory for the relevant services. If you arrange for someone else to take your waste away you have a legal duty of care to make sure they are registered with the Environment Agency and they hold a waste carriers licence, otherwise if the waste is later found to be disposed of illegally you can be held liable or prosecuted.

Scavenging Animals
It is your responsibility to ensure your refuse does not cause litter and to clear it up promptly if it does. Containing your refuse sacks in a traditional style dustbin or cage that can be easily emptied by hand and placing your refuse out for collection as late as possible before 7am on your collection day should help to protect your refuse from animals.

Reducing your Waste
Reducing household waste helps the environment by saving energy, natural resources and reducing the amount of waste for disposal. You can help by making a conscious effort to reduce, re-use and recycle as much as possible of the waste you produce.

In order to further reduce the demand on landfill, the Council provides numerous local recycling centres throughout the district as well as a kerbside paper/card, glass/cans collection service - see recycling collections for more details.