Recycling rules for Reading
Based on Reading published guidance · Last verified September 2026
Something wrong or out of date? Tell us
Here's what currently goes in each bin in Reading.
Search what goes in your bins →Quick answers for Reading
Polystyrene: Not accepted in Reading's recycling bin
Not recyclable kerbside.
Glass bottles and jars: Not accepted in Reading's recycling bin
Not accepted in the red recycling bin. Bring sites around the borough.
Food waste: Reading has a separate food waste collection
Takes uneaten food and plate scrapings, dairy products and eggs, bread, cakes and pastries and more.
Shredded paper: Goes in your recycling bin
In small cardboard box or envelope.
Tins and cans: Goes in your recycling bin
Rinse — drink cans, food tins.
Clothes: Not accepted in Reading's recycling bin
Clothing, bedding and duvets are not accepted. Donate or charity.
Your bins in Reading, by colour
Grey bin
General rubbish
The council says general rubbish bins are usually grey
Green bin
Grass, hedge cuttings, leaves and plants
Green is the garden waste colour in 49 of the 125 councils with a checked garden waste colour.
Or a green bag
What goes in each bin
Recycling
Accepted
Plastics
- Plastic bottles · Drinks, milk, toiletries, cleaning · Symbol guide
- Plastic pots · Yoghurt, cream, snack, soup
- Plastic trays · Fruit punnets, meat/cake trays
- Plastic tubs · Ice cream, margarine, sweets
- Toothpaste tubes · UK basics
Paper & Card
- Paper and card
- Shredded paper · In small cardboard box or envelope · UK basics
Other
- Cartons · Tetra Pak — juice, milk, soup · Symbol guide
Metals
- Clean foil and foil trays · UK basics
- Tins and cans · Rinse — drink cans, food tins · Symbol guide
- Empty aerosol cans · Deodorant, air freshener, hairspray · UK basics
Not accepted
- Plastic bags, film and wrapping · Not recyclable kerbside · UK basics
- Black plastic trays · Sorting machines can't detect them · UK basics
- Kitchen towels and tissues · Contaminated — general waste
- Wet wipes · Not recyclable
- Food waste · Goes in food waste bin
- Nappies and sanitary products · General waste only
- Coffee cups · Lined with plastic — not recyclable · UK basics
- Textiles · Clothing, bedding and duvets are not accepted · UK basicsInstead: Donate or charity
- Polystyrene · Not recyclable kerbside · UK basics
- Trade or business waste · Separate commercial service
- Glass bottles and jars · Not accepted in the red recycling bin · Symbol guideInstead: Bring sites around the borough
Common mistakes
- Small electricals · Clear bag next to red bin on collection day · Symbol guide
- Household batteries · Clear bag on top of recycling bin lid · UK basics
Tips (12)
- • Rinse tins and cans
- • Shredded paper in a box
- • No plastic bags or film
- • No black plastic trays
- • No kitchen towels
- • No coffee cups
- • Glass to bring sites
- • Toothpaste tubes accepted
- • Foil trays can be recycled
- • Batteries in clear bag on lid
- • Small electricals in clear bag
- • Tetra Paks go in recycling
Food Waste
Accepted
- Uneaten food and plate scrapings
- Dairy products and eggs
- Bread, cakes and pastries
- Raw and cooked meat and bones
- Raw and cooked fish
- Fruit, vegetables and peelings
- Rice, pasta and beans
- Tea and coffee bags and grounds
- Pet food
- Cooking oil · Sealed in plastic bottle, in outdoor bin
Not accepted
- Packaging or trays · Including compostable packaging
- Large amounts of liquids · Such as milk
- Garden waste and cut flowers · Goes in green bin
- Pet waste or litter · General waste only
Common mistakes
- Compostable packaging→ goes in General Waste · Not accepted in food waste
- Cut flowers→ goes in Garden Waste · Goes in green garden bin
Tips (8)
- • All cooked food accepted
- • Meat and bones are fine
- • Pet food is accepted
- • Out of date food goes in
- • Tea bags go in food bin
- • Egg shells are accepted
- • No packaging of any kind
- • Cooking oil in sealed bottle
Garden Waste
Accepted
- Grass cuttings
- Hedge cuttings
- Leaves
- Plants and weeds
- Untreated wood and branches · Up to 100mm thick
- Twigs
- Dead flowers
Not accepted
- Food waste · Including fruit and vegetablesInstead: Food waste bin
- Treated wood · Contains chemicals
- Turf or soil · Not compostable in this service
- Garden furniture · Bulky waste collection
- Pet bedding or litter · General waste only
- Gravel or rubble · Not organic waste
- Plastic bags and wrappers · Not compostable
Common mistakes
- Turf and soil · Take to recycling centre
Tips (8)
- • Branches up to 100mm thick
- • Grass cuttings accepted
- • No food waste in garden bin
- • No treated wood
- • No soil or turf
- • No pet waste
- • No plastic bags
- • Leaves and weeds accepted
Food waste in Reading
In Reading’s own words (checked September 2026): “The food waste is collected weekly on the same day as your household waste and recycling bins.”
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 Reading
- Postcode districts all or nearly all in Reading: RG1.
- Postcode districts mostly in Reading: RG2 (shared with Wokingham); RG4 (shared with South Oxfordshire); RG30 (shared with West Berkshire).
- Postcode districts partly in Reading: RG6 (shared with Wokingham); RG31 (shared with West Berkshire).
Built-up areas (ONS) with the most postcodes in Reading: Reading, Caversham.
Shares count each district’s live postcodes; a district is listed where Reading 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
In South Oxfordshire the garden waste bin is brown (green here).
Neighbouring councils we have checked: South Oxfordshire.
When are bins collected in Reading?
Reading sets collection days by street: find your bin day, or browse neighbours’ schedules by postcode.
In Reading, 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 Reading’s own words: “Reading Borough Council provides an alternate weekly collection of general waste (non-recyclables) and recycling.”
No Reading streets on BinBosh yet: add yours for neighbours to adopt.
How we checked this page
We checked this guidance against Reading’s website in September 2026.
Source: Reading 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 Reading?
In Reading the garden waste bin is green. Reading also lists a red bin for recycling, and a grey bin for general rubbish. Green is the garden waste colour in 49 of the 125 councils with a checked garden waste colour.
Does Reading collect food waste, and how often?
In Reading’s own words (checked September 2026): “The food waste is collected weekly on the same day as your household waste and recycling bins.”
Do bin collections change on bank holidays in Reading?
In Reading, 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 Reading?
Reading’s recycling bin takes “Plastic bottles”, “Plastic pots” and “Plastic trays”, among other things.
See the full recycling listWork for Reading? See how BinBosh helps councils →
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