Recycling rules for South Cambridgeshire
Based on South Cambridgeshire published guidance · Last verified September 2026
Something wrong or out of date? Tell us
Here's what currently goes in each bin in South Cambridgeshire.
Search what goes in your bins →Quick answers for South Cambridgeshire
Polystyrene: Not accepted in South Cambridgeshire's recycling bin
Not recyclable kerbside. Goes in the black bin.
Cardboard: Goes in your recycling bin
Blue bin — flatten.
Glass bottles and jars: Goes in your recycling bin
Blue bin.
Food waste: Goes in your garden waste bin
Wrap in paper bags or newspaper.
Shredded paper: Goes in your recycling bin
Blue bin — in paper or clean plastic bag.
Clothes: Not accepted in South Cambridgeshire's recycling bin
Charity shops or clothing banks.
Your bins in South Cambridgeshire, by colour
Blue bin
Recyclable materials
Blue is the recycling colour in 32 of the 73 councils with a checked recycling colour.
Green bin
Food and garden waste
Green is the food waste colour in 18 of the 58 councils with a checked food waste colour.
Green is the garden waste colour in 49 of the 125 councils with a checked garden waste colour.
Empty your kitchen caddy into the green bin
Black bin
Non-recyclable and non-compostable material
Black is the general rubbish colour in 45 of the 84 councils with a checked general rubbish colour.
What goes in each bin
Recycling
Accepted
Paper & Card
- Paper, newspapers and magazines · Blue bin · Symbol guide
- Envelopes · Blue bin
- Cardboard · Blue bin — flatten
- Greeting cards · Blue bin
- Wrapping paper · Blue bin — no metallic plastic
- Shredded paper · Blue bin — in paper or clean plastic bag · UK basics
Other
- Cartons · Blue bin — Tetra Pak · Symbol guide
Plastics
- Empty plastic bags · Blue bin — not black bin bags · UK basics
- Plastic packets and wrappers · Blue bin — bread bags, pasta bags
- Plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays · Blue bin — no black plastic · Symbol guide
Metals
- Food and drinks cans · Blue bin · Symbol guide
- Empty aerosols · Blue bin · UK basics
- Tinfoil and foil trays · Blue bin · UK basics
- Biscuit and sweet tins · Blue bin
Glass
- Glass jars and bottles · Blue bin · Symbol guide
Not accepted
- Food · Goes in green bin
- Liquids · Empty containers first
- Nappies · Goes in black bin
- Clothes, textiles or shoes · Charity shops or clothing banks · UK basics
- Expanded polystyrene · Not recyclable kerbside · UK basicsInstead: Goes in the black bin
- Foam and sponge · Goes in black bin
- Non-packaging plastic · Toys, bowls — black bin
- Metallic plastic wrappers · Crisp packets — black bin
- Black bin bags · Not accepted in recycling
- Flat glass or mirrors · Different type to bottle glass
- Pyrex · Different type to bottle glass
- Kitchen paper and tissues · Goes in green bin
- Dirty packaging · Rinse first or black bin
- Paint tins · Not accepted in any bin
Common mistakes
Tips (12)
- • All recycling in blue bin
- • No black plastic accepted
- • No metallic wrappers
- • Flatten cardboard
- • Rinse dirty packaging
- • Plastic bags OK if empty
- • Shredded paper in a bag
- • No polystyrene or foam
- • No flat glass or mirrors
- • No Pyrex in blue bin
- • No black bin bags
- • Batteries on top of lid
Garden Waste
Accepted
- Garden waste · Grass cuttings, leaves
- Untreated wood
- Straw and sawdust
- Food waste · Wrap in paper bags or newspaper
- Used paper tissues and kitchen paper
- Cooled wood ash · Bagged in paper sack
Not accepted
- Any plastic · Not compostable
- Compostable plastic bags · Not accepted despite labelling
- Cat or dog waste · Not compostable in this service
- Soil, stones or turf · Not organic waste
- Treated wood · Contains chemicals
- Rubble · Not organic waste
- Loose ash or coal ash · Must be cooled and bagged
Common mistakes
- Compostable bags→ goes in General Waste · Not accepted — use paper bags instead
Tips (8)
- • Green bin for garden+food
- • Wrap food in newspaper
- • No plastic of any kind
- • No compostable bags
- • No pet waste
- • Paper tissues go in green
- • Cool ash before binning
- • No soil, stones or turf
How South Cambridgeshire compares
- South Cambridgeshire takes plastic bags at the kerbside (“Empty plastic bags”). Of the 119 councils whose lists say either way, 93 do not.
Food waste in South Cambridgeshire
23 of the 179 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 South Cambridgeshire
- Postcode districts all or nearly all in South Cambridgeshire: CB21, CB22, CB23 and CB24.
- Postcode districts mostly in South Cambridgeshire: SG8 (shared with North Hertfordshire).
- Postcode districts partly in South Cambridgeshire: CB1, CB3, CB4 and CB5 (shared with Cambridge); CB10 (shared with Uttlesford); CB25 (shared with East Cambridgeshire); SG19 (shared with Central Bedfordshire, Huntingdonshire).
Built-up areas (ONS) with the most postcodes in South Cambridgeshire: Cambourne, Cambridge, Histon and Impington, Sawston, Great Shelford and Stapleford, Melbourn, Cottenham, Waterbeach, Linton, Papworth Everard, Fulbourn, Willingham.
Shares count each district’s live postcodes; a district is listed where South Cambridgeshire 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
On bank holidays, that week’s collections move a day later in South Cambridgeshire; in Central Bedfordshire, collections stay on the usual day.
In Braintree the general rubbish bin is grey (black here).
In Uttlesford the general rubbish bin is grey (black here) and the food waste bin brown (green here).
Neighbouring councils we have checked: Central Bedfordshire, Cambridge, Braintree, Uttlesford.
When are bins collected in South Cambridgeshire?
South Cambridgeshire sets collection days by street: find your bin day, or browse neighbours’ schedules by postcode.
In South Cambridgeshire, 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.
Garden waste is collected less often in December, January and February.
No South Cambridgeshire streets on BinBosh yet: add yours for neighbours to adopt.
How we checked this page
We checked this guidance against South Cambridgeshire’s website in September 2026.
South Cambridgeshire and Cambridge publish one set of guidance on one site, so their lists here are the same.
Source: South Cambridgeshire 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 South Cambridgeshire?
In South Cambridgeshire the recycling bin is blue, the food waste and garden waste bin is green and the general rubbish bin is black. Blue is the recycling colour in 32 of the 73 councils with a checked recycling colour.
Where does glass go in South Cambridgeshire?
Glass goes in the blue recycling bin in South Cambridgeshire (“Glass jars and bottles”).
Is garden waste collected all year in South Cambridgeshire?
Garden waste is collected less often in December, January and February.
Do bin collections change on bank holidays in South Cambridgeshire?
In South Cambridgeshire, 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 South Cambridgeshire?
South Cambridgeshire’s recycling bin takes “Paper, newspapers and magazines”, “Envelopes” and “Cardboard”, among other things.
See the full recycling listWork for South Cambridgeshire? See how BinBosh helps councils →
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