Your new waste and recycling collections have started

The law has recently changed. The Environment Act and Simpler Recycling now requires the collection of recycling materials from households, and not from bring banks, so all councils must start collecting a wider range of recyclable material from the kerbside and provide a weekly food recycling collection from all households. This is not specific to Braintree District Council.

The Council also wants to divert as much waste as possible from landfill, or incineration, and capture more of this for recycling to support our climate aspirations.

The Council wants to meet the targets set nationally and, as part of the new Waste Strategy for Essex, to recycle at least 65% of household waste by 2035. It also aims to reduce the cost of waste collection and disposal as part of these changes.

All residents should have received a second letter from the Council by the 26 May 2026 including information on the collection changes, along with a new waste and recycling collection calendar from June 2026.

You can download your new collection calendar and view your collection schedules on the My Account portal.

Residents will be able to request a replacement copy of their letter via a webform which will be linked here, from 26 May. Replacements will be sent via email with a PDF calendar, unless stated that a letter is preferred, with a hard copy calendar.

Food recycling will continue to be collected weekly. Please let us know if you would like to order a food caddy.

Each bin is collected once every four weeks, but they are collected on alternate fortnights, meaning that you’ll still put out recycling every two weeks.

This means your collections might look like:

• Week 1 – Mixed Recycling Box or Blue bin.
• Week 3 – Paper and Card Box or Red bin

Non-recyclable waste (grey bin/sacks) will be collected every three weeks.

Garden waste will continue to be collected fortnightly.

View your collection calendar

Unauthorised side waste - extra bags or loose waste left at the side or on top of bins/boxes will not be collected.

Changes are commencing from 1 June 2026.

The changes to your households’ collections and the date of your first collection will be stated in your letter and is available on the waste portal.

View your collection calendar

Your letter will confirm your new collection day. You can download your collection calendar in PDF format

You can also check your collection day on the Council website using the My Account portal. This will show the most up to date information.

Bins/boxes should be put out for collection no earlier than the evening before collection and by 7am on your collection day.

At your usual collection point or your agreed assisted collection point.

Please return your bins/boxes to your property as soon as possible after collection and no later than the end of the collection day.

No.

Bins/boxes should not be stored on the pavement, road or any public highway, as this can cause an obstruction or nuisance to others.

Bins/boxes should be stored within your property or boundary when not presented for collection.

The council website has the full up to date list of what is accepted in each container.

View what goes in each bin

Bins and boxes may not be collected for the following reasons:

• The wrong items are found inside (contamination)
• The bin was too full or the lid would not close
• Extra waste was left beside the bin/box (unauthorised side waste)
• The bin/box was put out too late or in the wrong place

If you bin was presented correctly and not collected, you can report a missed collection.

If a bin or box contains items that should not be there, it may be classed as “improperly presented” and not collected. You will need to remove the incorrect items and wait until the next collection day.

The council website has the full up to date list of what is accepted in each container.

View what goes in each bin

If you are elderly, disabled or have medical needs, you may be eligible for an assisted collection. You can apply for an assisted collection for all waste and recycling collections.

You can report this online and request a repair or replacement bin.

You can start to use your new recycling bins/boxes after your last sack collection has taken place during May.

You can view the Household Waste and Recycling Policy on our website. The policy outlines the Council’s approach to waste and recycling services, including service types, collection schedules, and resident and council responsibilities.

Non-recyclable waste collections are moving from fortnightly to three-weekly because new national recycling laws require us to collect more recyclable materials at kerbside, including glass, soft plastics and food and drink cartons.

Most of what currently goes in the non-recyclable waste bin can be recycled and by recycling these materials, it should free up capacity in your grey bin meaning that they don’t require collections as frequently.

The Council offers a separate absorbent hygiene (AHP) collection service for eligible residents. The collections will take place using Council issued sacks and will be collected the week before and on every non-recyclable waste collection day.

Apply for AHP collections

Some properties will experience a three-week (or longer) gap between grey bin collections at the start of June.

To support these residents, we will allow up to 2 additional refuse sacks to be presented alongside the grey bin on their first scheduled collection in June or collect up to 5 sacks in total from our black sack properties.

This applies only to collections taking place between 8 June and 19 June for affected properties only. After this, all properties should be aligned to the standard three-week cycle, and no additional sacks will be collected.