What goes in my bins

These pages list what you can and cannot put in bins collected by us.

Bins filled with the wrong items will not be emptied and a flyer or leaflet will be hung on your bin handle with information on why we did not empty your bin. 

Excess rubbish left outside of your bins will not be collected.

Two sets of grey bins, red bins and then green bins.

Grey, general rubbish, bins

Put these items in your grey bin

Do not put these items in your grey bin

The following should not go in your grey bin but you can take them to the Household Waste Recycling Centre:

Red, recycling bins

Put these items in your red bin

  • All Items listed should be clean, dry and loose.
  • Drink cans , metal food tins, glass jars with their lids, and bottles with their lids - rinsed out.
  • Flattened cardboard food boxes, carboard packaging, delivery boxes and egg cartons
  • Loose plastic bottles: e.g. all household clear and colour plastic bottles such as drinks, shampoo, and washing up liquid bottles - rinsed out.
  • Paper, magazines, newspapers, catalogues and phone directories.
  • Plant pots - rinsed and cleaned
  • Plastic containers: e.g. food trays, yoghurt pots, margarine tubs, plastic takeaway food and drink containers - rinsed and cleaned.
  • Toilet or kitchen roll inner cardboard.

Do not put these items in your red bin

  • Batteries.
  • Bin liners, sacks, plastic bags and wrappers or cling film.
  • Christmas cards and wrapping paper.
  • Garden or food waste.
  • Liquids.
  • Nappies.
  • Polystyrene type items.
  • Shredded paper or tissue paper.
  • Takeaway food containers such as pizza boxes and takeaway drinks cups.
  • Toys.

The following should not go in your red bin but you can take them to the Household Waste Recycling Centre:

  • aerosols
  • eleectric or electronic items
  • hazardous waste
  • milk, soup and juice cartons (Tetrapak)
  • metal objects
  • textiles, clothes, shoes
  • wood.

The Recycle now website guides you to where else, in Slough, you can recycle your items.

Green, garden waste bins

Put these items in your green bin

Your green bin is for garden waste only. This includes:

  • bark, twigs, and small branches
  • cut flowers, small plants and weeds
  • grass cuttings
  • hedge and shrub trimmings
  • leaves.

Do not put these items in your green bin

  • General refuse.
  • Black sacks, plastic bags or bin liners.
  • Glass, plastic bottles, paper or cardboard (use your red bin).
  • Invasive plants such as Japanese knotweed.
  • Kitchen, food or pet waste.
  • Plastics i.e. pots and tubs (use your red bin).

The following items should not go in your green bin but you can take them to the Household Waste Recycling Centre:

  • large branches, logs and stumps
  • metal
  • stone, concrete, timber or builder or construction waste.

* You can take these items to the Household Waste Recycling Centre.

You can go to the YouTube site to access the "New recycling heroes in town" video with an interactive transcript  - select the 3 horizontal dots icon and choose "Open transcript". Please note the video may autoplay.

Transcript

Did you know? There are new recycling heroes in town! [cheering]

Alongside our existing recycling heroes:

  • paper and card
  • glass bottles and jars
  • tins and cans
  • and plastic bottles

you can now recycle:

  • yoghurt pots
  • plastic takeaway containers
  • tubs and lids of all kinds
  • plastic punnets.

But watch out for these sneaky villains.

Anything stained with food or dirt is not recycable! Such as: 

  • cardboard takeaway boxes with food stains
  • takeaway pizza boxes
  • plastic bags and any plastic wrapping or
  • tissue paper.

Remember! Don’t put recycling in a bag!

Keep your red bin happy! Only put dry, clean and loose recycling in your bin.

Not sure what you can recycle?

Check out our website www.slough.gov.uk/redbin, all one word, no spaces between "red" and "bin". [the web address for What goes in your red bin is read out]

[upbeat music fades out]

More about what goes in my bins