Waste less this Christmas

• Food
• Christmas trees
• Christmas cards and wrapping paper
• Cardboard boxes
• Batteries
• Festive clothing
• Collection dates and garden waste  

Food:

Reduce - make sure to take a shopping list with you so that you only buy what you need over the festive period. Try using the notes facility on your phone to save paper. Make sure you check the use-by dates so that you eat food in date order. Check your fridge temperature - The Food Standards Agency advises it should be 5°C or below. If you can't eat all your food in time, check to see whether you can freeze the items (visit lovefoodhatewaste.com for more hints and tips).

Reuse - leftover vegetables from the Christmas dinner can be made into bubble and squeak or a delicious winter vegetable soup. If you've got a lot of leftovers, avoid throwing them away by sticking them in your freezer after the celebrations.

Recycle - for those leftovers that you can't make use of, please recycle these in the food waste caddy or purple bin. You can put all your food leftovers, raw and cooked, in the caddy, including turkey bones, egg shells and peelings. Food waste is collected every week on the same day as your recycling or rubbish. Food waste is taken to our facility in Padworth to be made into soil conditioner. Or if you have a composter at home, you can compost your own food waste. For more information on home composting, visit our composting webpage.

Back to top

Christmas trees: 

Reduce - if you prefer the tradition of having a real Christmas tree, you can still reduce waste by not buying new decorations every year. Instead, choose decorations wisely and keep them to use again and again.

Reuse - potted trees or Christmas trees with roots that can be planted in the garden are becoming a more popular choice. If you have an artificial tree, they need to be used for up to nine years in order to have less impact than real trees.

Recycle - If you are a subscriber to the garden waste collection service,  we will collect your real Christmas tree from the kerbside. Please put it out with your garden waste bin on your recycling day for collection between Tuesday 7 January 2025 until Friday 31 January 2025. Please remember to remove all lights, decorations and pots.

If you do not subscribe to the garden waste collection service, some garden centres and charities have special collection arrangements in place such as take-back schemes. Alternatively, Christmas trees can be taken to one of our household waste recycling centres. Please make sure you have an online permit and you book an appointment before your visit. This can be done here: www.westberks.gov.uk/clickandtip

Please DO NOT leave trees on the pavement because we cannot collect them with rubbish.

Back to top

Christmas cards and wrapping paper:

Reduce - why not send e-cards or give gift experiences instead of large gifts this year.

Reuse - Christmas cards from last year can be cut out and used as gift tags. Pinking shears are an excellent investment to make these look shop bought. Wrapping paper can also be reused or gifts can be put into saved gift bags or cardboard boxes. To make it easier to reuse wrapping paper, secure gifts with ribbon or coloured string instead of tape.

Recycle - as long as Christmas cards and wrapping paper aren't covered in glitter, foil or other embellishments they can be recycled in your green box. Please do the 'scrunch test' (see below) to see if your wrapping paper can be recycled. Wrapping paper can also be recycled at separate bins at both of our HWRCs. 

Back to top

Cardboard boxes:

Reduce - try to shop locally, this will reduce the need for lots of deliveries in cardboard boxes.

Reuse - try to reuse the boxes within your home or offer them to friends/family.

Recycle - cardboard can be recycled within your green box. If you run out of space in your green box for card and paper, you can leave cardboard next to it. Just make sure you flatten and fold it to a smaller size (no bigger than 85cm x 45 cm).

Back to top

Batteries

The lead up to Christmas is a frenzy of gift-buying, decorating, and food preparation. Many elements of the Christmas spirit are powered by batteries, from toys/gadgets to Christmas lights/decor to kitchen scales for Christmas baking and cooking. Here are some ideas to help power your Christmas season in an environmentally responsible way.

Reduce - switch to using rechargeable batteries wherever possible or plug electrical equipment into the mains electricity.

Reuse - try to buy appliances that use renewable energy - a wind up radio or torch, dynamo bicycle lights or solar powered garden lights.

Recycle - yes, we now recycle most household batteries from the kerbside. Put your batteries in a clear plastic bag, and simply place them on top of your black wheelie bin on collection day. Our new waste collection vehicles have special compartments designed just for these batteries, ensuring they're safely recycled. For more information about kerbside battery collections please click here.

*Please note this service is not available to residents that have a communal bin store.

Important: Batteries should never be placed inside your wheelie bin. Doing so can cause them to ignite during the waste compaction process, posing a significant fire hazard. While we'll gladly collect most household batteries, there are some exceptions: car/moped batteries, lithium-ion (Li) power tool batteries, and vapes, should be taken to our household recycling centres at Newtown Road, Newbury, or Padworth. To schedule a visit, book an appointment online.

Festive clothing:

Reduce - do you really need a new Christmas jumper this year?

Reuse - can you swap with a friend/family member or buy second hand clothing.

Recycle - if your Christmas clothing has lost its sparkle then clothes can be recycled at clothing banks across the district or placed out in a labelled bag next to your recycling collection.

Back to top

Don't forget collection dates are changing over Christmas

Garden waste collections will not take place from Monday 23 December 2024 until Monday 6 January 2025. Garden waste collections will resume as planned on Tuesday 7 January 2025. The garden waste collection vehicles and operatives provide temporary support with the recycling and rubbish collections which usually see an increase in demand over the festive period.

Up to 3 extra open-topped bags of garden waste will be collected on your first scheduled garden waste collection from Tuesday 7 January 2025. We cannot collect Hippo or tonnage bags.

Please see below for the change of collection days over the Christmas period.

Finally, we would like to wish all our residents a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Back to top