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Recycling rules for Wakefield

Based on Wakefield published guidance · Last verified September 2026

Something wrong or out of date? Tell us

Under Simpler Recycling, councils across England are standardising collections. Here's what currently goes in each bin in Wakefield.

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Quick answers for Wakefield

Your bins in Wakefield, by colour

Green bin

General household waste

Green is the general rubbish colour in 16 of the 100 councils with a checked general rubbish colour.

Food waste also goes in this bin

Brown bin (recycling)

Plastic, cans, cartons, glass, paper and card

Brown is the recycling colour in 10 of the 91 councils with a checked recycling colour.

One of two brown bins - the other brown bin is for garden waste

What goes in the recycling bin →

Brown bin (garden)

Garden waste

Brown is the garden waste colour in 77 of the 141 councils with a checked garden waste colour.

One of two brown bins - the other brown bin is for recycling; collected March to November

What goes in the garden waste bin →

See every council’s bin colours

What goes in each bin

Recycling

Accepted

Plastics

  • Plastic bottles · Symbol guide
  • Plastic pots and tubs · Including yoghurt pots and margarine tubs
  • Plastic trays · Including food packaging
  • Fruit or vegetable punnets
  • Non-black plastic plant pots

Other

  • Empty toothpaste tubes · UK basics
  • Cartons for food, drink and other liquids · Including juice or milk substitute cartons

Metals

  • Steel cans · Soup, beans, dog food and so on · Symbol guide
  • Aluminium drinks cans
  • Clean foil · UK basics
  • Empty aerosol cans · E.g. deodorant, air fresheners, furniture polish · UK basics

Paper & Card

  • Paper and card
  • Paperback books
  • Newspapers and magazines · Symbol guide
  • Envelopes
  • Cardboard boxes · Squash them to save space

Glass

  • Glass bottles and jars · Rinse, then always put the lids back on · Symbol guide

Not accepted

  • Soft plastic packagingInstead: Green household waste bin
  • Plastic bags inside the binInstead: Green household waste bin
  • Windowpane glass
  • Drinking glasses
  • Pyrex dishes
  • Broken glass and crockeryInstead: Green household waste bin
  • Shredded paper · UK basics
  • Waxed paper
  • Greaseproof paper
  • Card with food on itInstead: Green household waste bin
  • Metal items other than cans and tins
  • Electrical items · Symbol guideInstead: Household Waste Recycling Centre
  • Batteries · UK basicsInstead: HWRC, bring site or supermarket battery point

Common mistakes

  • Greasy food packaging → goes in General Waste · Takeaway cartons and pizza boxes: green bin
  • Polystyrene → goes in General Waste · Green household waste bin · UK basics
  • Crisp packets and wrappers → goes in General Waste · Green household waste bin · UK basics
  • Food → goes in General Waste · Including leftovers, eggshells, rotten fruit and vegetables
  • Nappies, wipes and sanitary products → goes in General Waste · Green household waste bin - never flush these
  • Vapes · HWRC, WEEE bring site or library pink bin
  • Textiles and clothes · HWRC, charity shop or clothing bank · UK basics
  • Paint and solvents · Not in any bin - take to a HWRC
  • Wood, rubble or stone · Not in any bin - take to a HWRC
  • Gas canisters · Dispose of safely at your local HWRC
  • Recyclables in the green bin → goes in Recycling · Anything that can be recycled: brown recycling bin
  • Greasy pizza boxes → goes in General Waste · Green bin, even if they say they can be recycled
Tips (18)
  • • Clean, free from food or drink
  • • Rinse jars, put lids back on
  • • Squash cardboard boxes
  • • No plastic bags inside the bin
  • • Extra: clear bags by the bin
  • • Flatpack extra card in one box
  • • Plant pots ok, not black ones
  • • Empty aerosols are accepted
  • • Clean foil is accepted
  • • No soft plastic packaging
  • • No shredded or waxed paper
  • • No greaseproof paper
  • • No card with food on it
  • • No broken glass or crockery
  • • No Pyrex or drinking glasses
  • • No windowpane glass
  • • No batteries or electricals
  • • Out by 7am on collection day

Garden Waste

Accepted

  • Flowers and plants
  • Bark, twigs and branches · Not large branches
  • Leaves
  • Hedge trimmings and prunings
  • Grass cuttings
  • Weeds

Not accepted

  • Food, fruit or vegetablesInstead: Green household waste bin
  • Soil, turf or compost
  • Pet waste and cat litterInstead: Pet waste: green household waste bin
  • Bones and eggshellsInstead: Eggshells: green household waste bin
  • Vacuum contents and hair
  • Planks of wood or large branchesInstead: Household Waste Recycling Centre
  • Rubbish or recyclingInstead: Green bin or brown recycling bin

Common mistakes

  • Garden waste in the green bin → goes in Garden Waste · Garden waste does not belong in the green bin
  • Extra garden waste bagged by the bin · Will not be taken - take it to a HWRC
Tips (15)
  • • Collected March to November
  • • Collected every fortnight
  • • Out on your green bin day
  • • Out by 7am on collection day
  • • Grass, leaves and weeds are ok
  • • Hedge trimmings accepted
  • • No soil, turf or compost
  • • No food, bones or eggshells
  • • No pet waste or cat litter
  • • No vacuum contents or hair
  • • No planks or large branches
  • • Bagged extras are not taken
  • • Extra garden waste to a HWRC
  • • Turned into soil improver
  • • One garden bin per property
What councils say about batteries, electricals and clothes
Recycling symbols explained

How Wakefield compares

  • Wakefield’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.
Which councils take shredded paper

Areas covered by Wakefield

  • Postcode districts all or nearly all in Wakefield: WF1, WF2, WF5, WF6, WF7, WF8, WF9 and WF90.
  • Postcode districts mostly in Wakefield: WF4 (shared with Kirklees); WF10 (shared with Leeds); WF11 (shared with North Yorkshire).
  • Postcode districts partly in Wakefield: S72 (shared with Barnsley); WF3 (shared with Leeds).

Built-up areas (ONS) with the most postcodes in Wakefield: Wakefield, Castleford, Pontefract, Ossett, Normanton, Horbury, South Elmsall, Featherstone, Hemsworth, Knottingley, South Kirkby, Ackworth Moor Top.

Shares count each district’s live postcodes; a district is listed where Wakefield 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 Kirklees the recycling bin is green; here the recycling bin is brown. Foil goes in the recycling in Wakefield but not in Kirklees.

In Leeds the recycling bin is green (availability: Bags instead if you are on a bag collection) and the general rubbish bin is black; here the recycling bin is brown and the general rubbish bin is green. On bank holidays, collections stay on the usual day in Wakefield; in Leeds, that week’s collections move a day later.

In Barnsley the general rubbish bin is grey and the garden waste bin is green; here the general rubbish bin is green and the garden waste bin is brown.

Neighbouring councils we have checked: North Yorkshire, Kirklees, Leeds, Barnsley.

When are bins collected in Wakefield?

Wakefield sets collection days by street: find your bin day, or browse neighbours’ schedules by postcode.

Wakefield doesn't move bin collections for bank holidays, so your usual day stands. Christmas and New Year weeks can still differ, so check the council's site for those. Your neighbours can vote on the actual day on BinBosh if it changes.

Wakefield does not collect garden waste in December, January and February.

BinBosh reminders skip these weeks, and a missed check-in in them does not break your streak.

No Wakefield streets on BinBosh yet: add yours for neighbours to adopt.

How we checked this page

We checked this guidance against Wakefield’s website in September 2026.

Source: Wakefield 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 Wakefield?

In Wakefield the recycling bin is brown, the garden waste bin is brown and the general rubbish bin is green. Brown is the recycling colour in 10 of the 91 councils with a checked recycling colour.

Where does glass go in Wakefield?

Glass goes in the brown recycling bin in Wakefield (“Glass bottles and jars”).

Is garden waste collected all year in Wakefield?

Wakefield does not collect garden waste in December, January and February.

Do bin collections change on bank holidays in Wakefield?

Wakefield doesn't move bin collections for bank holidays, so your usual day stands. Christmas and New Year weeks can still differ, so check the council's site for those.

What goes in the recycling bin in Wakefield?

Wakefield’s recycling bin takes “Plastic bottles”, “Plastic pots and tubs” and “Plastic trays”, among other things.

See the full recycling list

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