Recycling rules for Redbridge
Based on Redbridge published guidance · Last verified September 2026
Under Simpler Recycling, councils across England are standardising collections. Here's what currently goes in each bin in Redbridge.
Search what goes in your bins →Quick answers for Redbridge
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. Redbridge's published guidance we hold doesn't list it.
Cardboard: Goes in your recycling bin
Flat, neat bundle next to your box (max 2ft x 3ft).
Glass bottles and jars: Goes in your recycling bin
Box 1.
Food waste: Redbridge has a separate food waste collection
Takes plate scrapings, eggs and eggshells, cheese and other dairy foods and more.
Your bins in Redbridge, by colour
Container colours as published by Redbridge. Some homes get a different container — see the notes.
Black bin
Domestic waste
Colour stated only on the clinical waste page; sack users and homes above shops differ
Black sack
Rubbish
Homes using sacks instead of a wheelie bin; up to three a week
Red sack
Rubbish
Homes above shops only
Green sack
Garden waste
Optional; £2 from Redbridge libraries. Open black sacks are also accepted
What goes in each bin
Recycling
Accepted
Metals
- Food tins and drinks cans — Box 1
- Empty aerosol cans — Box 1
- Aluminium foil and foil trays — Box 1 — rinsed, no food, scrunch small pieces
Glass
- Glass bottles and jars — Box 1
Plastics
- Plastic bottles — Box 1
- Plastic pots, tubs and trays — Box 1 — clean, rinsed, no food, no black plastic
Paper & Card
- Cartons and Tetra Paks — Box 1 — accepted from 31 March 2026
- Paper — Box 2
- Envelopes — Box 2 — including windows
- Thin card — Box 2
- Thick card — Box 2 — fold or cut it to fit inside the box
- Larger cardboard — Flat, neat bundle next to your box (max 2ft x 3ft)
Other
- Clean tubes — Box 1 — e.g. face wash; accepted from 31 March 2026
Not accepted
- Black plastic — No black plastic pots, tubs or trays
- Recycling with food on it — Must be completely free from food, rinsed and squashed
- Recycling in black bags — Use clear sacks/bags, not black bagsInstead: Clear sacks, cardboard boxes or similar storage boxes
- Recycling in a bin or wheelie bin — Not collected if presented in a bin or wheelie binInstead: Recycling boxes or clear sacks
- Recycling in dustbins or moving crates — Recycling must not be presented in these
Common mistakes
- Batteries — Never in a household bin; use a battery recycling point
- Small electricals — Never in a household bin; Chigwell Road centre takes them
- Laughing gas canisters — Gas canister cage at Chigwell Road Recycling Centre
- Paint — Not collected at kerbside; Chigwell Road centre takes it
- Needles and syringes — Sharps container; free collection, call 020 8554 5000
- Nappies and sanitary products→ goes in General Waste — Hygiene waste goes in your domestic waste wheelie bin
Tips (15)
- • Use the 2 box system
- • Clear sacks, not black bags
- • Out by 6am on collection day
- • Boxes within your boundary
- • Rinse and squash, no food
- • No black plastic
- • Flatten cardboard
- • Remove packing tape
- • Card bundles max 2ft x 3ft
- • Never in a wheelie bin
- • No dustbins or moving crates
- • Weekly, same day as rubbish
- • Cartons from 31 March 2026
- • Scrunch small foil pieces
- • Box £7.45 with a soft lid
Food Waste
Accepted
- Plate scrapings
- Eggs and eggshells
- Cheese and other dairy foods
- Fruit and vegetables — Raw or cooked
- Bread, pastries, cakes and biscuits
- Meat and bones — Raw or cooked
- Fish and fish bones — Raw or cooked
- Rice, pasta and beans
- Tea bags and coffee grounds
Not accepted
- Oils — Not accepted in the food waste caddy
- Liquid fat — Not accepted in the food waste caddy
- Garden waste — Not accepted in the food waste caddy
- Animal bedding — Not accepted in the food waste caddy
- Packaging of any kind — Not accepted in the food waste caddy
- Liquids like milk — Not accepted in the food waste caddy
- Carrier bags as caddy liners — Too large for the food waste processing machineryInstead: Reuse small bags such as bread, salad or cereal bags
Tips (14)
- • Weekly, on your usual bin day
- • Out by 6am at your boundary
- • Tie the liner before moving it
- • Liners are optional
- • No carrier bags as liners
- • Reuse bread or salad bags
- • Cooked or raw food accepted
- • Bones are accepted
- • No oils or liquid fat
- • No liquids like milk
- • No packaging of any kind
- • Handle upright locks the lid
- • Must use council outdoor caddy
- • Wash caddies in soapy water
Garden Waste
Accepted
- Hedge cuttings
- Grass cuttings
- Weeds
- Garden plants
- Flowers
- Dead leaves
- Twigs
Not accepted
- Builders' sacks — Too heavy and unwieldy to carry; a risk when liftingInstead: Open black sacks or official garden waste sacks
Tips (12)
- • Max five bags per collection
- • Out by 6am at your boundary
- • Sacks must be left open
- • Open black sacks are fine
- • Green sacks £2 at libraries
- • No builders' sacks
- • Collected every fortnight
- • Runs March to October
- • Pay cash at Central Library
- • Proof of residency to buy
- • Lost bags not replaced free
- • Homes with own gardens only
When are bins collected in Redbridge?
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.
In Redbridge, 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.
No streets in Redbridge 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 larger cardboard go in Redbridge?
In Redbridge, larger cardboard goes in your recycling bin. Flat, neat bundle next to your box (max 2ft x 3ft).
What bin do glass bottles and jars go in Redbridge?
In Redbridge, glass bottles and jars go in your recycling bin. Box 1.
What goes in the recycling bin in Redbridge?
Redbridge's recycling bin accepts food tins and drinks cans, glass bottles and jars, plastic bottles, plastic pots, tubs and trays, empty aerosol cans, aluminium foil and foil trays, and more. Box 1.
What goes in the food waste bin in Redbridge?
Redbridge's food waste bin accepts plate scrapings, eggs and eggshells, cheese and other dairy foods, fruit and vegetables, bread, pastries, cakes and biscuits, meat and bones, and more. Raw or cooked.
What goes in the garden waste bin in Redbridge?
Redbridge's garden waste bin accepts hedge cuttings, grass cuttings, weeds, garden plants, flowers, dead leaves, and more.
What bin do batteries go in Redbridge?
In Redbridge, batteries need specialist recycling, not your kerbside bins. Never in a household bin; use a battery recycling point.
What bin does black plastic go in Redbridge?
In Redbridge, black plastic can't go in your recycling bin. No black plastic pots, tubs or trays.
What can't be recycled in Redbridge?
Items not accepted in Redbridge: black plastic, recycling with food on it, recycling in black bags, recycling in a bin or wheelie bin. Black plastic — no black plastic pots, tubs or trays.
Helpful Guides
Source: Redbridge council website. Check your council's site for the latest updates.
Work for Redbridge? See how BinBosh helps councils →
Never guess which bin
Get free reminders the night before your bins go out.