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Waste and recycling

Excess and additional recycling

During kerbside recycling collections we'll collect recycling from boxes, which should contain:

You must sort your recycling for collection:

  • we accept boxes containing mixed plastic, tins, glass and foil
  • paper and cardboard must be kept separate from other materials

Households with kerbside collections are presented with 3 recycling boxes, with lids, free of charge. You can order additional or replacement waste containers if you find you have more recycling than will fit in these 3 containers.

Our crews may not always be able to collect all boxes presented, due to limited capacity.

See further information about what happens to your recycling after collection.

Excess items for recycling collections

Small amounts of excess recycling can be presented in addition to your recycling boxes. Whilst we will make every effort to collect all excess recycling presented, we may not always have space within our vehicles.

Any excess recycling not collected should be presented at the next scheduled collection, taken to a household waste recycling centre (HWRC), or to local collection banks.

Find out what to do if you have more items than fit inside your recycling boxes:

Find out what to do with items which are not suitable for recycling at the kerbside.

We can provide additional recycling boxes and lids to anyone who regularly has excess recycling.


Excess plastic

If you have more plastic than will fit into your recycling boxes, put out any excess in untied carrier bags, not black bin bags.

Leave bagged plastic next to your recycling boxes.

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Excess tins and cans

If you have more tins than will fit into your recycling boxes, put out any excess in untied carrier bags, not black bin bags.

Leave bagged tins next to your recycling boxes.

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Excess glass

If you have more glass than will fit into your recycling boxes, put out any excess in a separate, sturdy container next to your recycling boxes.

Please do not use cardboard boxes to present excess glass, as there is a risk that the box containing the glass may be damaged by rain or damp conditions, leading to them falling apart when collection is attempted.

We cannot accept excess glass in plastic bags, for safety reasons.

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Excess foil

If you have more foil than will fit into your recycling boxes, put out any excess in untied carrier bags, not black bin bags.

Leave bagged foil next to your recycling boxes.

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Excess paper and cardboard

If you have more paper and cardboard than will fit into your recycling boxes, put out any excess next to your recycling boxes, in a separate sturdy container of similar size (approximately 55 litres).

You must ensure paper and cardboard is flattened and broken down into small pieces which fit inside the container.

Please do not use cardboard boxes to present excess paper and cardboard, as there is a risk that the box containing the cardboard may be blown away. Cardboard containers may also be damaged by rain or damp conditions, leading to them falling apart when collection is attempted. They also take up too much space within our vehicles making them fuller much quicker.

We cannot accept additional cardboard in plastic bags, as we cannot collect mixed cardboard and plastic.

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Items which cannot be collected from the kerbside

You can use our HWRCs at Hazel Court HWRC and Towthorpe/Strensall HWRC to dispose of a range of items, such as:

  • excess recycling
  • large, unbroken boxes
  • larger quantities of glass

Some items aren’t suitable for recycling at the kerbside due to the way we carry out recycling in York, however, you can dispose of a range of items at local recycling banks.

Our recycle and reuse A to Z also explains how to recycle many common waste items.

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Order additional waste containers

Order additional or replacement waste containers to store your household recycling if you're regularly producing more recycling than will fit in your containers.

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Also see

Waste, Highways and Environmental Services

Telephone: 01904 551551

Waste and recycling collections

Enter your postcode to find out when we'll collect your household waste, kerbside recycling and garden waste.

Waste Collection Calendar