Recycling and Sustainability: Our Borough's Road to a Greener Future

Recycling and Sustainability are at the heart of how our borough manages waste, reduces emissions and supports local communities. This page outlines our recycling strategy, the practical services available, and the partnerships that help turn waste into value. We use a mix of kerbside collection, bring-sites and transfer stations to increase recovery rates while encouraging a culture of reuse and repair.

Our borough’s current recycling percentage target is to achieve a 65% recycling and reuse rate by 2030, with interim milestones to guide progress. This recycling goal aligns with regional low-carbon objectives and is backed by investment in infrastructure and behaviour change. Household sorting is emphasised across the council areas, with standardised caddy systems for food waste, separate containers for glass and paper and clearly labelled boxes for mixed dry recycling to improve capture rates.

Local transfer stations play a pivotal role in our network. Facilities such as the Northside Transfer Station and Riverside Consolidation Hub act as logistics centres where separated streams are checked, bulked and dispatched to material recovery facilities or reuse partners. These transfer points reduce unnecessary long-haul journeys and allow more efficient consolidation of materials — one of the practical steps that helps the borough reach its recycling and sustainability ambitions.

Partnerships with charities and social enterprises are integral to our approach. Working with local reuse charities, furniture redistribution schemes and clothing banks turns household items destined for disposal into resources for people in need. These collaborations are supported by targeted bulky waste collection services that divert reusable items away from landfill.

We have formal agreements with several not-for-profit organisations to accept usable items recovered from bulky collections and transfer stations. Activities supported include:

• Furniture and white goods reuse – repair, safety checks and rehoming.
• Clothing banks and textile sorting for resale or recycling.
• Electronics repair hubs to extend device lifetimes.

Our fleet strategy prioritises low-carbon vans and electric collection vehicles to lower emissions from local waste operations. Small electric vans and hybrid trucks are being rolled out for local collections and for transporting materials from bring-sites to transfer stations. Route optimisation software reduces mileage and improves service reliability, supporting the borough’s sustainable recycling objectives.

We also pilot cargo bikes and small EVs in denser neighbourhoods to handle lightweight recyclables and community collections. These smaller, quieter vehicles reduce congestion and are especially effective during school and community events where short, frequent trips are needed. Investment in charging infrastructure at depot locations helps keep the low-carbon fleet operational and cost-effective.

Specific recycling activity across the borough varies by neighbourhood: several wards operate a two-stream system (glass & containers separate from paper & card), while others use three-stream splits that include food waste separately collected for anaerobic digestion. Kerbside food caddies are common, and garden waste collections operate seasonally. Special collection days for hazardous household waste and dedicated e-waste drop-offs support safe disposal of problematic items.

To further the recycling and sustainability programme, the borough runs targeted education campaigns and community composting projects that reduce organic waste sent for treatment. Compost produced from collected green waste is used in local parks and community gardens, closing material loops and demonstrating circular economy benefits at neighbourhood level. Pilots for pay-as-you-throw and incentive schemes are also evaluated to encourage behaviour change.

Monitoring and transparent reporting are central to meeting the recycling percentage target. Quarterly performance reports track key indicators such as capture rates for cardboard, glass, and food waste, contamination levels in recycling bins, and diversion rates for bulky and electronic waste. These metrics inform where resources are needed and which areas benefit most from additional outreach.

In summary, our borough’s recycling and sustainability framework combines practical service delivery, strong partnerships with charities and social enterprises, and investment in low-carbon vans and transfer station infrastructure. Together, these measures support waste separation at source, increase reuse and recovery, and help deliver a greener, more resilient community. Join the effort by sorting recyclables correctly, supporting reuse initiatives and using local bring-sites — every action helps us reach our shared target.