Our Commitment to Recycling and Sustainability

We are proud to present our local approach to recycling and sustainability, a practical plan that blends community action with measurable environmental goals. Our borough-wide aim is clear: reach a 65% recycling percentage target by 2030. This sustainable recycling ambition reflects an ongoing shift toward circular resource use, lower landfill dependence and improved carbon outcomes. By combining improved kerbside services, transfer station investment and strategic partnerships we are accelerating progress across neighbourhoods and high-density areas.

Across the boroughs we operate a cohesive waste separation strategy that balances convenience with high capture rates. Many neighbourhoods use split collection systems for food waste, paper and card, glass and metals; others employ a dual-stream approach where dry mixed recycling is collected separately from residual waste. Recycling & sustainability in practice includes targeted textile banks, separate batteries and small electrical drop-off points, and seasonal green waste rounds. These tailored routes reflect differences in housing types from terraced streets to apartment blocks, where communal bins and on-site recycling points play a vital role.

Local transfer stations are a core part of our infrastructure: they receive, consolidate and prepare materials for reprocessing while minimising vehicle miles by reducing direct long-haul journeys to distant facilities. Our network of transfer hubs follows strict environmental standards and supports effective sorting and onward logistics. Key transfer locations serve as regional consolidation points for glass, mixed plastics and organic streams, and are designed to accept bulky items for reuse or repair rather than disposal. Transfer stations also enable faster turnaround for collections, reducing idling and emissions in residential streets.

We work closely with local charities and social enterprises to ensure materials keep value in the economy. Partnerships with furniture reuse organisations, electronics refurbishment programmes and food redistribution charities amplify the social benefits of recycling initiatives. These collaborations divert repairable goods away from the waste stream and help people in need, creating jobs and training opportunities in the reuse sector. Strong partnership models demonstrate how sustainability and recycling can deliver measurable social as well as environmental returns.

Our community engagement extends to schools, housing associations and businesses to embed better separation behaviors. Educational campaigns promote correctly sorted paper and card, rinsed containers, separate glass and metal, and the importance of keeping food waste uncontaminated. We support local swap events, repair cafes and collection drives that complement municipal services: by combining civic infrastructure with charity-led reuse routes we increase capture rates while reducing costs and emissions.

Low-carbon logistics are central to delivering a greener recycling service. We have introduced a fleet of low-emission vans including battery-electric collection vehicles, plug-in hybrids and opportunity-charging light commercial vehicles for short runs and dense urban rounds. Low-carbon vans and cargo bikes reduce noise and roadside pollution, while route optimisation software ensures fewer miles per tonne collected. By coupling cleaner vehicles with consolidated transfer station stops we cut operational CO2 and improve air quality in neighbourhoods.

Transparent measurement and reporting underpin our recycling program. We publish regular performance updates against the recycling percentage target and track progress across material streams including organics, paper and packaging, glass and bulky reuse. Interim milestones—such as reaching 50% recycling by 2026—help focus efforts on contamination reduction and capture improvement. Our monitoring combines tonnage data from transfer stations with household participation metrics from collection routes to ensure robust governance of the recycling & sustainability agenda.

To make it easy for residents to contribute, we provide clear guidance on separation, practical signage at communal points and frequent outreach. Ways you can help include:

• Use the correct container for food waste and keep it free from plastics.
• Rinse and flatten packaging before placing in dry mixed recycling.
• Donate usable furniture or appliances to partnered charities instead of disposing.

These simple actions reduce contamination, increase the value of recycled materials and allow transfer stations to process loads more efficiently.

Looking ahead, our long-term vision for sustainability and recycling emphasises circular economy principles: reduce, reuse, repair, recycle. We will continue to expand reuse partnerships, upgrade transfer station sorting capabilities and scale up low-carbon vans and non-road collection methods where they deliver tangible benefits. Together with residents, community groups and charity partners, we can meet and exceed our recycling percentage target and create a cleaner, greener borough for future generations.