Recycling rules for County Durham
Based on County Durham published guidance · Last verified September 2026
Something wrong or out of date? Tell us
Here's what currently goes in each bin in County Durham.
Search what goes in your bins →Quick answers for County Durham
Polystyrene: Goes in your general waste bin
Rubbish bin; only the cardboard outer box is recycled.
Cardboard: Goes in your recycling bin
Keep dry; put large boxes next to your recycling bin.
Glass bottles and jars: Goes in your recycling bin
Food waste: County Durham has a separate food waste collection
Takes plate scrapings, meat, fish and bones, bread and pastries and more.
Shredded paper: Not accepted in County Durham's recycling bin
Tins and cans: Goes in your recycling bin
All steel and aluminium.
Your bins in County Durham, by colour
Blue bin
Recycling
Blue is the recycling colour in 35 of the 91 councils with a checked recycling colour.
Blue lid
Black caddy
Food waste
Black is the food waste colour in 2 of the 74 councils with a checked food waste colour.
External caddy, 23 litres, collected weekly; flats and communal properties not yet served
Grey caddy
Food waste
Internal kitchen caddy, 7 litres; not put out for collection; you can use your own instead
What goes in each bin
Recycling
Accepted
Plastics
- Plastic bottles · All, including lids and pumps/triggers · Symbol guide
- Plastic pots · Such as yoghurt and cream pots
- Plastic tubs · Such as margarine, butter and ice cream tubs
- Plastic trays · Such as fruit and meat trays
- Plant pots · Not black ones: take those to the recycling centre
Paper & Card
- All paper
- Cardboard boxes · Keep dry; put large boxes next to your recycling bin · Symbol guide
- Greeting cards · Plain cards without foil, glitter or ribbon
- Envelopes
- Supermarket pizza boxes · Cardboard outer box only; disc and wrap go in rubbish
Metals
- Food tins and drink cans · All steel and aluminium · Symbol guide
- Aerosol cans · UK basics
Other
- Cartons · Such as fruit juice, drinks, soup; squash, replace lid · Symbol guide
Glass
- Glass bottles and jars · Symbol guide
Not accepted
- Plastic wrap and film · UK basicsInstead: Rubbish bin
- Ready meal food traysInstead: Rubbish bin
- Polystyrene and bubble wrap · UK basicsInstead: Rubbish bin
- Black plastic · UK basics
- Black plastic cartons
- Black plastic plant potsInstead: Take them to the recycling centre
- Black bagsInstead: Put recycling loose into the bin
- Carrier bags · UK basicsInstead: Rubbish bin
- Crisp packets · UK basicsInstead: Many supermarkets and stores (check first), or rubbish bin
- Kitchen paperInstead: Rubbish bin
- Baby, facial and cleaning wipesInstead: Rubbish bin
- NappiesInstead: Rubbish bin
- Tissues
- Shredded paper · UK basics
- Cutlery and other metal objects
- Pans
- Oven trays
- Pyrex
- Light bulbs
- Mirrors
- Flat glass
Common mistakes
- Takeaway pizza boxes → goes in General Waste · Rubbish bin; only supermarket outer boxes are recycled
- Pizza box polystyrene disc and plastic wrap → goes in General Waste · Rubbish bin; only the cardboard outer box is recycled
- Food waste → goes in Food Waste · Harms recycling quality; use the weekly food caddy
- Pet waste → goes in General Waste · Harms recycling quality; rubbish bin
- Soft plastics: bread, salad, pasta bags and wrappers · Many supermarkets and stores take them; check first
- Clothes, shoes and bedding · We cannot recycle them; take them to charity · UK basics
Tips (19)
- • Alternate weeks with refuse
- • Wash and squash items
- • Put items in loose, not bagged
- • No black bags or carrier bags
- • Extra recycling in a clear bag
- • Large boxes next to your bin
- • Keep cardboard dry
- • Bottle lids and triggers ok
- • Squash cartons, replace lid
- • No black plastic
- • Black pots: recycling centre
- • No wrap, film or crisp packets
- • Soft plastics to supermarkets
- • No polystyrene or bubble wrap
- • Takeaway pizza boxes: rubbish
- • No food, pet waste or nappies
- • No Pyrex, mirrors or bulbs
- • Clothes and shoes to charity
- • If in doubt, keep it out
Food Waste
Accepted
- Plate scrapings
- Meat, fish and bones · Both raw and cooked
- Bread and pastries
- Fruit and vegetables · Including skins, e.g. banana skins
- Tea bags and coffee grounds
- Dairy products and eggs · Such as cheese; eggshells too
- Mouldy and out of date food · Please remove packaging
- Cooked food
- Pet food · All food intended for household pet consumption
Not accepted
- Packaging of any kind
- Plastic
- Liquids such as milk
- Oil or liquid fat
- Foil, cutlery, polystyrene, glass or plastic food wrap
Common mistakes
- Flowers and plants → goes in Garden Waste · Garden waste bin, if you sign up for collections
Tips (18)
- • Collected every week
- • Same place as your bins
- • Only food waste in caddies
- • Remove packaging first
- • Raw and cooked meat and fish
- • Bones and eggshells are ok
- • Mouldy, out-of-date food ok
- • Liners optional, any kind
- • Plastic bags ok as liners
- • No liquids, oil or fat
- • No foil, glass or cutlery
- • No flowers or plants
- • Don't put kitchen caddy out
- • Lockable lid keeps pests out
- • Secure caddy in windy weather
- • Unhook caddy before collection
- • Ask for an extra caddy if full
- • Free, no sign-up needed
Garden Waste
Accepted
- Grass cuttings
- Shrubs
- Leaves · Only from trees free from infection
- Weeds
- Flowers and plants
- Hedge clippings
- Prunings
- Small branches · Thinner than 7cm in diameter
Not accepted
- Plastic and black bags
- Biodegradable or compostable bags
- Plant pots and plastic trays
- Large amounts of soilInstead: Take surplus soil to a recycling centre (tip)
- Bricks and rubble
- Stones
- NappiesInstead: Rubbish bin
- Paper, plastic and cardboard
- Textiles and clothing
- Children's toys
- Garden ornaments
- Large branches
- Diseased plants and leavesInstead: Burn leaves from infected trees on site
- Toxic plants such as Rhododendron, Yew and Ragwort
- Fruit from fruit trees
- Petrol, gas canisters and chemicals
Common mistakes
- Kitchen and food waste → goes in Food Waste · Disease risk in the compost; use the food caddy
- Pet waste → goes in General Waste · Disease risk in the compost; rubbish bin
- Batteries · Not the rubbish bin either; council battery recycling
Tips (14)
- • Sign up for garden collections
- • Put garden waste in loose
- • No plastic or black bags
- • No compostable bags either
- • Branches under 7cm across
- • Soil on roots is fine
- • Surplus soil: recycling centre
- • No food or pet waste
- • No fruit from fruit trees
- • No diseased plants or leaves
- • Burn infected leaves on site
- • No Yew, Ragwort or Foxglove
- • No stones, bricks or rubble
- • No plant pots or trays
How County Durham compares
- County Durham’s lists say shredded paper does not go in its recycling (“Shredded paper”). Of the 79 councils whose lists say either way, 56 take it.
Food waste in County Durham
In County Durham’s own words (checked September 2026): “From Spring 2026, every house in the county will receive a weekly food waste collection alongside the existing refuse and recycling service.”
22 of the 181 councils whose food waste guidance we have checked say it is starting or being rolled out.
The government’s rule for England requires “weekly food waste collections for most homes, unless a transitional arrangement applies”. Read it on gov.uk
Which councils collect food waste weeklyAreas covered by County Durham
- Postcode districts all or nearly all in County Durham: DH1, DH2, DH6, DH7, DH9, DH97, DH98, DH99, DL4, DL12, DL13, DL14, DL15, DL16, DL17, SR7, SR8, TS28 and TS29.
- Postcode districts mostly in County Durham: DH3 (shared with Gateshead); DH8 (shared with Northumberland); DL5 (shared with Darlington); TS21 (shared with Stockton-on-Tees, Darlington); TS27 (shared with Hartlepool).
- Postcode districts partly in County Durham: DH4 (shared with Sunderland); DL2 (shared with Darlington, North Yorkshire); DL11 (shared with North Yorkshire); NE16, NE17 and NE39 (shared with Gateshead).
Built-up areas (ONS) with the most postcodes in County Durham: Durham, Consett, Newton Aycliffe, Bishop Auckland, Chester-le-Street, Seaham, Stanley, Peterlee, Spennymoor, Annfield Plain, Shildon, Crook.
Shares count each district’s live postcodes; a district is listed where County Durham has at least 5% of them or 50. Built-up areas are ONS statistical areas, not a list from the council.
Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2025. Contains Royal Mail data © Royal Mail copyright and database right 2025. Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v.3.0. Council homepages: GOV.UK, Open Government Licence v3.0.
Next door
Plastic pots, tubs and trays go in the recycling in County Durham but not in Northumberland. Food and drink cartons go in the recycling in County Durham but not in Northumberland.
County Durham collects food waste separately; Westmorland and Furness says it does not.
County Durham collects food waste separately; North Yorkshire says it does not.
Neighbouring councils we have checked: Northumberland, Westmorland and Furness, North Yorkshire, Sunderland.
When are bins collected in County Durham?
County Durham sets collection days by street: find your bin day, or browse neighbours’ schedules by postcode.
In County Durham, a bank holiday pushes that week's collections back by a day: after a Monday holiday, Monday's bins go out on Tuesday, Tuesday's on Wednesday, and so on. BinBosh adjusts your dates automatically, and your neighbours can vote on the actual day if it differs.
In County Durham’s own words: “The Council will collect household refuse and segregated household recyclables on an alternate weekly basis with refuse one week and recycling the following week.”
No County Durham streets on BinBosh yet: add yours for neighbours to adopt.
How we checked this page
We checked this guidance against County Durham’s website in September 2026.
Source: County Durham council website, which has the latest updates. Bin colours are as the council publishes them; some homes get a different container.
Something wrong or out of date? Tell us
Every report goes to BinBosh’s owner, who checks it against the council’s own page.
Frequently asked questions
What colour are the bins in County Durham?
In County Durham the recycling bin is blue and the food waste caddy is black. County Durham also lists a grey caddy for food waste. Blue is the recycling colour in 35 of the 91 councils with a checked recycling colour.
Where does glass go in County Durham?
Glass goes in the blue recycling bin in County Durham (“Glass bottles and jars”).
Does County Durham collect food waste, and how often?
In County Durham’s own words (checked September 2026): “From Spring 2026, every house in the county will receive a weekly food waste collection alongside the existing refuse and recycling service.”
Do bin collections change on bank holidays in County Durham?
In County Durham, a bank holiday pushes that week's collections back by a day: after a Monday holiday, Monday's bins go out on Tuesday, Tuesday's on Wednesday, and so on. BinBosh adjusts your dates automatically, and your neighbours can vote on the actual day if it differs.
What goes in the recycling bin in County Durham?
County Durham’s recycling bin takes “Plastic bottles”, “Plastic pots” and “Plastic tubs”, among other things.
See the full recycling listWork for County Durham? See how BinBosh helps councils →
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