Christmas and New Year bin collection day changes

Leeds City Council has released the details of this year’s changes to bin days over the Christmas period, together with a handy reminder of what can be recycled through the green bin.

The council is urging residents to check when their Christmas bin days are this year. Details will be provided on the council’s website, on the Leeds Bins app, through social media and in a leaflet being delivered to all homes.

The bin collections service will be closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day only, with crews operating throughout the rest of the festive period including Sundays to help make sure everyone still gets a collection. As a result, collection days will change from Sunday 22 December until Sunday 5 January.

A big change for all Leeds residents this year is that glass should now be recycled using the green recycling bin rather than the black bin. If households have more glass bottles and jars than usual over the festive season, there are still more than 700 bottle banks available to be used across the city.

Launched in August, glass collection through the green bin means that 68 per cent of the city’s glass is now being recycled, an increase from an initial 43 per cent. In October almost 900 tonnes of glass was collected and recycled from the green bins; the equivalent of two million wine bottles or 5.5 million beer bottles. Of that glass, over 82 per cent is being remelted into new bottles and jars locally in Yorkshire, saving more than 100 tonnes of carbon per month, with the rest being recycled for other uses.

However, that means that 32 per cent of glass is still being put in the black general waste bin, so the council is keen to encourage more households to make an extra effort this Christmas to put all their glass bottles and jars in the green bin or their local bottle bank.

For all the extra festive waste and packaging, household waste recycling centres will be open each day from 8am to 4pm except on Christmas Day, Boxing Day, and New Year’s Day. Check www.leeds.gov.uk/recycling for more information.

Once the festive celebrations are over both St Gemma’s and Sue Ryder hospices in Leeds are offering their services to collect Christmas trees again in early January.

Leeds City Council executive member for climate, energy, environment and green space Councillor Mohammed Rafique said: “As the classic song goes it is the most wonderful time of the year, but it is also the time when household bins get full, so we would encourage everyone in the city to note when their bin collections will be over Christmas and new year to ensure they don’t miss it.

“We also ask people to remember to put their glass in the green bin rather than the black bin to ensure it can be fully recycled.”

The St Gemma’s online booking form is currently live and available via Treecycling | St Gemma’s Hospice. They will be collecting between 9-16 January, covering postcodes LS4, LS5, LS6, LS7, LS8, LS9, LS13, LS14, LS15, LS16, LS17, LS18 and LS25.

Sue Ryder are collecting 9–14 January, covering LS6, LS7, LS8, LS12, LS13, LS16, LS18, LS19, LS20, LS21, LS26, LS27, LS28 and BD11. Their booking website is now live at Sue Ryder Christmas Treecycling Leeds | Sue Ryder