Recycling rules for Medway
Based on Medway published guidance · Last verified October 2026
Under Simpler Recycling, councils across England are standardising collections. Here's what currently goes in each bin in Medway.
Search what goes in your bins →Quick answers for Medway
Polystyrene: Usually general waste (UK-wide position)UK-wide, not council-specific
Across the UK, polystyrene is rarely collected at the kerbside and usually belongs in general waste. Medway's published guidance we hold doesn't list it.
Cardboard: Goes in your recycling bin
Blue reusable bag.
Glass bottles and jars: Goes in your recycling bin
White reusable bag.
Food waste: Medway has a separate food waste collection
Takes meat and fish, plate leftovers and scraps, fruit and vegetable peelings and cores and more.
Tins and cans: Goes in your recycling bin
White reusable bag.
Aerosols: Goes in your recycling bin
White reusable bag.
Your bins in Medway, by colour
Container colours as published by Medway. Some homes get a different container. See the notes.
Blue bag
Paper and card
White bag
Glass bottles and jars, cans, plastic bottles
Clear sacks for extra
Brown sack
Garden waste
Availability: Homes that cannot have a brown wheelie bin
What goes in each bin
Recycling
Accepted
You can use your blue reusable bag for:
- Magazines or newspapers · Blue reusable bag
- Envelopes · Blue reusable bag
- Junk mail · Blue reusable bag
- Paper · Blue reusable bag
- Cardboard · Blue reusable bag
Use blue reusable recycling bags for:
- Telephone directories
You can use your white reusable bag for:
- Glass bottles and jars · White reusable bag
- Metal food and drink cans · White reusable bag
- Plastic food packaging · White reusable bag
- Clean metal foil · White reusable bag
- Aerosol cans · White reusable bag
- Plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays · White reusable bag
Not accepted
- Food items · Treated as general rubbish, not recycled
- Black rubbish sacks in shared bins · Results in a contamination strike
Food Waste
Accepted
You can recycle all types of food waste, including:
- Meat and fish
- Plate leftovers and scraps
- Fruit and vegetable peelings and cores
- Bread, pasta and rice
- Egg shells
- Tea bags and coffee grounds
Not accepted
What food waste can be recycled, you cannot recycle:
- Packaging
- Liquids such as milk
- Oil or liquid fat
- Any material that is not food waste
Garden Waste
Accepted
In your subscription brown bin you can put:
- Grass and hedge clippings
- Garden prunings and weeds · Not ragwort or Japanese Knotweed
- Small branches · No more than 5cm across
- Dead plants
- Leaves
- Flowers
Not accepted
You cannot put into your subscription brown bin:
- General household waste
- Plastic bags or packaging
- Soil and stones
- Manufactured wood
- Dog waste or pet litter
When are bins collected in Medway?
This page covers what goes in each bin. Collection days are set by the council and vary by street. See how to find your bin collection day, or browse streets by postcode to see schedules your neighbours have added.
Check with the council over bank holidays. See the council’s page →
In Medway’s own words: “Refuse, recycling and garden or food waste are collected on a weekly collection schedule on the same day every week and carried out in different collection vehicles.”
No streets in Medway on BinBosh yet — be the first to add yours, and your neighbours can adopt it instead of setting up their own.
Frequently asked questions
What bin does cardboard go in Medway?
In Medway, cardboard goes in your recycling bin. Blue reusable bag.
What bin do glass bottles and jars go in Medway?
In Medway, glass bottles and jars go in your recycling bin. White reusable bag.
What bin does food waste go in Medway?
In Medway, food waste goes in your food waste bin. It takes meat and fish, plate leftovers and scraps, fruit and vegetable peelings and cores and more.
What bin do tins and cans go in Medway?
In Medway, metal food and drink cans go in your recycling bin. White reusable bag.
What goes in the recycling bin in Medway?
Medway's recycling bin accepts magazines or newspapers, envelopes, junk mail, paper, cardboard, telephone directories, and more. Blue reusable bag.
What goes in the food waste bin in Medway?
Medway's food waste bin accepts meat and fish, plate leftovers and scraps, fruit and vegetable peelings and cores, bread, pasta and rice, egg shells, tea bags and coffee grounds, and more.
What goes in the garden waste bin in Medway?
Medway's garden waste bin accepts grass and hedge clippings, garden prunings and weeds, small branches, dead plants, leaves, flowers, and more. Not ragwort or Japanese Knotweed.
What can't be recycled in Medway?
Items not accepted in Medway: food items, black rubbish sacks in shared bins, packaging, liquids such as milk. Food items — treated as general rubbish, not recycled.
Helpful guides
Source: Medway council website. Check your council's site for the latest updates.
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