From Monday 28 April 2025, we’ll collect non-recyclable waste from homes every three weeks, instead of every two weeks.

As part of this change, we’ll no longer collect recycling and non-recyclable waste on Saturdays. This means your collection day might also change.

Before the changes take place where you live, we’ll deliver a letter to your home confirming the change and a calendar showing your new collection dates.

Whilst your collection day might change, we’ll continue to collect your:

• food waste and ‘dry recycling’ every week,
• nappy and absorbent hygiene products every week, if you’re registered for this service,
• clinical waste every week, if you’re registered for this service, and
• garden waste every two weeks between March and November, if you’re registered for this chargeable service.

Your ‘dry recycling’ includes your:

• glass bottles and jars,
• mixed metals, plastics and cartons, including:
  • metal cans, tins, aerosols and foil,
  • plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays, and
  • food and drink cartons (such as Tetra Pak),
• cardboard and paper, and
• household batteries.

If you live in a flat, or a house of multiple occupation (that is, a shared house or flat), with communal bins, we’ll work with you and your landlord to introduce the change to your non-recyclable waste collections. We’ll deliver a letter to your home about any changes to your collections before they take place.

Welsh Government has set targets for Welsh councils to recycle 70% of household waste by 2025. And whilst the recycling rate in Flintshire has improved during the last three years, increasing from 60% to 63%, we must continue to recycle more of our waste to meet this target and avoid being charged a heavy fine. Based on our current recycling performance, we already expect to be fined more than £1million for failing to meet the recycling targets for 2022/23.

More than 1 million homes in the UK already receive less frequent collections for their non-recyclable waste and it’s resulted in improvements to recycling rates in those areas.

Also, data shows that 58% of the items Flintshire residents put in their black bins for non-recyclable waste could have been easily recycled from home using our weekly recycling collections or by taking them to a local Household Recycling Centre. If you sort your waste and recycle the best you can using the separate recycling collections we provide every week, you’ll have less leftover waste to put in your bin for non-recyclable waste. 

By reducing how often we collect your leftover non-recyclable waste, we’ll also lessen the distance we travel, which cuts the amount of pollution emitted by vehicles and lowers our carbon emissions, which helps prevent climate change.

When we recycle our recyclable waste materials and turn them into new items, we reduce the need for new or “virgin” materials and therefore use less energy. 

Across the UK, more than 1 million households already have their non-recyclable waste collected by their local council every three weeks, and this has resulted in a significant increase in recycling in those areas.

When Bridgend County Borough Council introduced its limit to non-recyclable waste collections, it achieved an increase of 10% to its recycling rate.

And when Pembrokeshire County Council made a similar change, it became the best recycling county in Wales.

Data shows that 58% of what Flintshire residents put in their bins for non-recyclable waste is recyclable, so we know there’s still a large amount of recycling to come out of these. 

If you sort your waste and recycle all you can using our separate recycling collections every week, you’ll have less leftover waste to put in your bin for non-recyclable waste.

From Monday 28 April 2025, we’ll no longer collect recycling and non-recyclable waste on Saturdays. This means your collection day might change.

Before the change takes place where you live, we’ll deliver a letter to your home confirming the change and a calendar showing your new collection dates. 

You can also check your collection dates here.

Yes. If you’re currently registered for an assisted collection, we’ll continue to provide this service for you on your collection day. 

For more information or to register for an assisted collection, click here.

Yes. If you currently receive nappy and absorbent hygiene waste collections, we’ll continue to provide this service for you every week. 

For more information or to register for nappy and absorbent hygiene waste collections, click here.

No, you’ll continue to use your existing black bin for your non-recyclable waste.

Please ensure you place your bin alongside your other recycling containers at your collection point before 7am on your collection day, then collect all your containers once we’ve emptied them.

As part of our existing Excess Waste Enforcement policy, you must ensure all your non-recyclable waste fits inside your bin. This means you must not put extra waste alongside your bin, or on top of it preventing the lid from closing, on your collection day. This is known as ‘excess waste’. 

Click here to find out what will happen if you put out ‘excess waste’ on your collection day.

Please don’t forcefully squash your non-recyclable waste into your bin or fill it with very heavy materials such as rubble or soil, as we may not be able to lift it to collect its contents.

If you have more non-recyclable waste than you can fit in your bin, you may hold onto it and put it out on your next collection day, or you may take it to your local Household Recycling Centre free of charge. Click here to find out if you need a permit, what you can take, and if you need to book your visit to your local Household Recycling Centre.

If you need help to sort your waste and to recycle correctly, email us at streetscene@flintshire.gov.uk or call our Streetscene team on 01352 701234 for advice and guidance.

If you have six or more people living in your home – and feel you’re recycling all you can but still need more space for your non-recyclable waste – you may apply for a larger 240-litre bin. Click here to apply for a larger bin for your non-recyclable waste or call our Streetscene team on 01352 701234. Once we receive your application for a larger bin, we’ll assess your individual situation and might replace your bin for a larger one, if you meet our requirements.

Data shows that 58% of what Flintshire residents put in their bins for non-recyclable waste could be easily recycled from home or local Household Recycling Centre. Once all food waste, dry recycling, nappy and absorbent hygiene products, and garden waste, are separated and put in the correct recycling containers, you’ll have enough room in your bin for your leftover non-recyclable waste, even if we collect this waste from your home every three weeks. 

We’ll continue to collect your:

• food waste and ‘dry recycling’ every week, 
• nappy and absorbent hygiene products every week, if you’re registered for this service, 
• clinical waste every week, if you’re registered for this service, and
• garden waste every two weeks between March and December, if you’re registered for this chargeable service.

Your ‘dry recycling’ includes your:

• glass bottles and jars (from your blue box),
• mixed metals, plastics and cartons (from your reusable grey bag), including:
  • metal cans, tins, aerosols and foil,
  • plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays, and
  • food and drink cartons (such as Tetra Pak),
• cardboard and paper (from your reusable blue bag), and
• household batteries (in a clear plastic bag left on top of, or next to, your other recycling containers).

If you produce more recycling than you can fit in your existing recycling containers, or yours are broken or have gone missing, you may collect extra or replacement recycling containers from your local Household Recycling Centre or Connects Centre.

You may take recyclable items that we don’t collect from your home, such as hard plastics and electrical items, to your local Household Recycling Centre free of charge, to be recycled. Click here to find out if you need a permit, what you can take, and if you need to book your visit to your local Household Recycling Centre.

And if you need to get rid of bulky household items that are in good condition – such as beds and sofas, mattresses, tables and chairs, wardrobes, cookers and dishwashers, fridge freezers, washing machines and tumble dryers, and carpet and carpet underlay – you may want to consider donating them to family, friends, neighbours or a local charity/community group instead. You may also contact local charity Refurbs Flintshire that can collect reusable furniture and electrical items from your doorstep free of charge. For more information, contact Refurbs Flintshire on 01352 734111. Alternatively, you could advertise them on your local Freecycle or Freegle website. 

You may also choose to book a bulky waste collection. Click here for information about our bulky waste collections service or call us on 01352 701234.

Or you may take these items to your local Household Recycling Centres free of charge, to be recycled.

Please don’t put the following items in your bin for non-recyclable waste, as they can be easily recycled from home using our weekly recycling collections service:

• Food waste
• Glass bottles and jars
• Metal cans, tins, aerosols and foil
• Plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays
• Food and drink cartons, such as Tetra Pak
• Cardboard and paper
• Household batteries
• Nappy and absorbent hygiene products (if you’re registered for this service)
• Clinical waste (if you’re registered for this service)

We’ll also collect your garden waste every two weeks between March and December, if you’re registered for this chargeable service.

You may take recyclable items that we don’t collect from your home, such as hard plastics and electrical items, to your local Household Recycling Centre free of charge, to be recycled. Click here to find out if you need a permit, what you can take, and if you need to book your visit to your local Household Recycling Centre.

To find out what household waste you can and can’t recycle from home, please click here. Alternatively, take a look at our Kerbside Collections Leaflet.

For information about what happens to your recycling and non-recyclable waste once collected, click here.

If you need to get rid of any plastic bags or wrapping, some of these items are accepted at ‘out of home’ recycling points at locations such as supermarkets. Visit www.walesrecycles.org.uk to find your nearest drop-off point.

The types of items accepted may vary between different locations. Please follow the guidance provided by each organisation.

If you’re unable to take these items to your local supermarket, and you need to dispose of these at home, please put them in your bin for non-recyclable waste.

You’re not limited to one set of reusable bags, bins, boxes and caddies for your recycling.  

If you produce more recycling than you can fit in your existing recycling containers, or yours are broken or have gone missing, you may collect extra or replacement recycling containers from your local Household Recycling Centre or Connects Centre.

You may take recyclable items that we don’t collect from your home, such as hard plastics and electrical items, to your local Household Recycling Centre free of charge, to be recycled. Click here to find out if you need a permit, what you can take, and if you need to book your visit to your local Household Recycling Centre.

And if you need to get rid of bulky household items that are in good condition – such as beds and sofas, mattresses, tables and chairs, wardrobes, cookers and dishwashers, fridge freezers, washing machines and tumble dryers, and carpet and carpet underlay – you may want to consider donating them to family, friends, neighbours or a local charity/community group instead. You may also contact local charity Refurbs Flintshire that can collect reusable furniture and electrical items from your doorstep free of charge. For more information, contact Refurbs Flintshire on 01352 734111. Alternatively, you could advertise them on your local Freecycle or Freegle website.

You may also choose to book a bulky waste collection. Click here for information about our bulky waste collections service or call us on 01352 701234.

Or you may take these items to your local Household Recycling Centre free of charge, to be recycled.

If you produce more recycling than you can fit in your existing recycling containers, or yours are broken or have gone missing, you may collect extra or replacement recycling containers from your local Household Recycling Centre or Connects Centre.

The standard bin size for homes with five or fewer people is a 180-litre bin.

If you have six or more people living in your home – and feel you’re recycling all you can but still need more space for your non-recyclable waste – you may apply for a larger 240-litre bin.

Click here to apply for a larger bin for your non-recyclable waste or call our Streetscene team on 01352 701234.

Once we receive your application for a larger bin, we’ll assess your individual situation and might replace your bin for a larger one, if you meet our requirements.

If you’d like to dispose of this non-recyclable waste more often than every three weeks, please take these items to your local Household Recycling Centre free of charge. You must sort these items and put them in the relevant skips. Click here to find out if you need a permit, what you can take, and if you need to book your visit to your local Household Recycling Centre.

We collect clinical waste – such as dressings, bandages, incontinence pads and sharps – every week, from homes registered for our free clinical waste collections service. For more information or to register for our free clinical waste collections service, email streetscene@flintshire.gov.uk or call our Streetscene team on 01352 701234.

If you need help to sort your waste and recycle correctly, email us at streetscene@flintshire.gov.uk or call our Streetscene team on 01352 701234 for advice and guidance.

To find out what household waste you can and can’t recycle from home, please click here. Alternatively, take a look at our Kerbside Collections Leaflet.

No. A very small amount of the Council Tax you pay covers the cost of the recycling and non-recyclable waste collection services we provide.

Click here for information about your Council Tax and what it’s used for.

Please ensure your recycling and/or non-recyclable waste is due to be collected on the day you’ve put your containers out to be collected.

Whilst we collect your recycling every week, we’ll collect your garden waste every two weeks between March and December, if you’re registered for this chargeable service, and your non-recyclable waste every three weeks. Click here to check your collection dates.

On your collection day, we may collect the contents of your bins at any time up until 4pm. If we’ve not collected the contents of your containers by 4pm, and we’ve not placed any stickers or tags on them, it’s likely we’ve missed your collection. Please click here to report a missed collection.

If we’ve not collected the contents of your containers, and we’ve also not collected the contents of your neighbours’ containers, please check our website or social media accounts for information about any disruptions to our collection services.

Please note there are some circumstances when we won’t have collected the contents of your container(s):

1. If you put extra waste alongside your bin, or on top of it preventing the lid from closing, this is known as ‘excess waste’. Click here to find out what will happen if you put out ‘excess waste’ on your collection day.
2. If you put any waste other than garden waste in your bin for garden waste, such as rubble, tyres, plastics, polystyrene, cardboard or DIY waste, we won’t collect its contents.
3. If you put non-recyclable items in any of your recycling containers, such as polystyrene or plastic bags and wrapping, we won’t collect their contents.
4. If we’ve put a sticker or tag on your container, please look at it and follow the guidance. 

If you’re unsure why we’ve not collected your recycling and/or non-recyclable waste, or why we’ve placed a sticker or tag on your container, click here. 

We all have a responsibility (known as a ‘Duty of Care’) to sort our waste and put it into the relevant containers so that it can be collected and recycled correctly.  

To find out what household waste you can and can’t recycle from home, please click here. Alternatively, take a look at our Kerbside Collections Leaflet.

If you need help to sort your waste and to recycle correctly, email us at streetscene@flintshire.gov.uk or call our Streetscene team on 01352 701234 for advice and guidance.

Under Section 46 of the Environmental Protection Act (1990), we may issue fines in certain circumstances where residents breach our excess waste, littering and fly tipping policies.

We collect a range of items as part of our free nappy and absorbent hygiene products collections service, which includes nappies and incontinence waste products, such as liners, wipes and tissues, and bed and chair absorbent pads.

We collect this waste every week from homes that are registered for this collections service.

If you’d like to register for our free nappy and absorbent hygiene products collections service, click here.

We don’t collect feminine hygiene products, such as sanitary towels, panty liners and tampons as part of our nappy and absorbent hygiene products collections service. Please bag these items then put them in your bin for non-recyclable waste. If you’d like to dispose of these items more frequently than every three weeks, please take them to your local Household Recycling Centre free of charge. Click here to find out if you need a permit, what you can take, and if you need to book your visit to your local Household Recycling Centre.

Reduce the waste you produce by swapping single-use nappies for reusable nappies.

Did you know the average baby uses 5,000 nappies, which costs around £1,500? And did you know that around 200 million nappies are thrown away in Wales each year? 

Reusable cloth nappies offer an environmentally friendly alternative to single-use nappies. These items are comfortable, can save you money, are easy to use, and reduce the amount of waste you produce. 

If you live in Flintshire and you’ve a child aged between 0 and 18 months old, you may be entitled to vouchers worth up to £75 to be used in part-payment to pay for real nappies or a Real Nappy Laundry Service. For more information about our Real Nappy Scheme, click here.

Animal waste can’t be recycled. If you need to get rid of any animal poo, please bag it then put it in your bin for non-recyclable waste. This includes cat litter.

If you need to get rid of any puppy training pads, please bag these then put them in your bin for non-recyclable waste. 

If your pet is a ‘herbivore’, eating only plant-based foods – such as rabbits, guinea pigs, tortoises and gerbils – you may put their bedding in any compost bin or on any compost heap you may have, or add it to your garden waste bin, as long as it’s clean and free from animal poo.

Issues with smells, flies, pests and vermin are mostly caused by decomposing food waste. Food waste makes up a large proportion of the waste we produce at home, and by separating it from your non-recyclable waste and putting it in your food waste caddy for us to collect every week, there is little time for any issues to develop. 

We provide food waste caddy liners for free, and food waste caddies can also be locked, which makes storing food waste between weekly collections more hygienic than putting it in your bin for non-recyclable waste to be collected every three weeks.

If you or someone in your home uses nappies or absorbent hygiene products, we understand these items generate smells over time. We collect this waste every week from homes that are registered for our free nappy and absorbent hygiene products collections service. If you’d like to register for our free nappy and absorbent hygiene products collections service, click here.

Please bag any other waste that can generate smells, such as animal poo or other types of hygiene waste, such as feminine hygiene products, before putting it in your bin for non-recyclable waste. If you’d like to dispose of these items more frequently, please take them to your local Household Recycling Centre free of charge. Click here to find out if you need a permit, what you can take, and if you need to book your visit to your local Household Recycling Centre.

We don’t believe this will happen. Many councils have already introduced similar changes to reduce the frequency of non-recyclable waste collections and data shows no link with an increase in fly-tipping. 

There is never an excuse for fly-tipping, and we have no reason to believe most Flintshire residents will start breaking the law in this way.

The most common items fly-tipped are bulky items or commercial waste, neither of which we collect as part of our routine household recycling and non-recyclable waste collections.

If you use our food waste and other recycling collection services every week, there’ll be enough space in your bin for your leftover non-recyclable waste. 

If you need to get rid of bulky household items you no longer want – such as beds and sofas, mattresses, tables and chairs, wardrobes, cookers and dishwashers, fridge freezers, washing machines and tumble dryers, and carpet and carpet underlay – you may:

• consider donating them to family, friends, neighbours or a local charity/community group, it your items are in good condition. You may also contact local charity Refurbs Flintshire that can collect reusable furniture and electrical items from your doorstep free of charge. For more information, contact Refurbs Furniture on 01352 734111. Alternatively, you could advertise them on your local Freecycle or Freegle website;
• book a bulky waste collection. Click here for information about our bulky waste collections service or call us on 01352 701234; or
• take these items to your local Household Recycling Centre free of charge, to be recycled.

We all have a responsibility to reduce our impact on our environment. If you see anyone fly-tipping, please report it to us.

Fly-tipping is illegal, and we will prosecute anyone caught committing this crime.

Where possible, please keep your bin on your property, place it alongside your other recycling containers at your collection point before 7am on your collection day, then collect your bin once we’ve emptied it. This should help prevent others from putting their waste in your bin.

If someone does put their waste in your bin without your permission, please contact us. We will deal with any complaints we receive about this issue.

You can recycle a wide range of materials at your local Household Recycling Centre free of charge.

If you need to get rid of any plastic bags or wrapping, some of these items are accepted at ‘out of home’ recycling points at locations such as supermarkets. Visit www.walesrecycles.org.uk to find your nearest drop-off point. The types of items accepted may vary between different locations. Please follow the guidance provided by each organisation. If you’re unable to take these items to your local supermarket, and you need to dispose of these at home, please put them in your bin for non-recyclable waste.