Garden waste terms and conditions, from April 2024

You can view terms and conditions for the 2023/24 garden waste collection year, which apply until 31 March 2024.

The following terms and conditions will apply to the garden waste service from 1 April 2024. 

The brown lidded garden waste bin 

1. A 240L brown lidded garden waste bin will be delivered to you within 10 working days of joining the service for the first time (excluding subscription period up to April 2024).
2. Bins are provided for customer use but remain the property of New Forest District Council (NFDC), charges are made to cover administration and delivery of the wheeled bin. 
3. Only official NFDC garden waste containers will be collected. Other bins, sacks and containers will not be accepted. 
4. Subscriptions are capped at 5 bins per household. 
5. You must mark your bins with your house number or name, so it is identifiable to your property. 
6. It is the householder's responsibility to pay for the administration and delivery of replacement wheeled bins, should the bin go missing or be stolen, or be damaged by the householder. Payment should be made online or by emailing customer.services@nfdc.gov.uk. 
7. If you present more waste than your subscription entitlement it will not be collected. Garden waste bins must be presented with the lid fully closed. Additional sacks or side waste will not be collected.  
8. New bins will not be issued to customers who are renewing their subscription as it is assumed that they will continue to use the bins from the previous subscription year. 
9. The bins can be used for the following materials: grass cuttings, hedge clippings, flowers and non-invasive weeds, leaves, twigs, and small branches up to diameter of less than 75mm, and Christmas trees (must be cut up to fit in the bin). 
10. The bins cannot be used for: fruit or vegetable peeling, food waste, invasive weeds (such as Japanese Knotweed or Himalayan Balsam), large branches more than 75mm in diameter, logs or tree stumps, animal waste and bedding, soil, rubble, concrete, stones, plastic bags, pots or trays. 

Collection day

1. Collections of garden waste will be made once a fortnight, except for a two-week seasonal pause from late December.
2. An email or letter will be sent on joining or renewing the service, which will contain your collection day. We reserve the right to change your collection day for operational reasons and will notify you in advance should changes need to take place. 
3. Garden waste bins must be presented for collection by 6.00am on collection day. 
4. Bins must be placed just within the property boundary in plain view, nearest to the public road or access point, unless otherwise agreed with us.
5. Residents will be provided with secure containers, therefore all containers should be set out at the edge or curtilage of the property, where it meets the public highway. In some circumstances, we may request that containers are left behind the householder's gate. Safe pedestrian access must be maintained, operatives cannot cross a cattle grid to collect waste and recycling containers. 
6. Assisted collections are available to residents who are physically unable to move the bin to the collection point, where there is nobody available to help them in the household. You can request an assisted collection online or email customer.services@nfdc.gov.uk for more information. 
7. Collection teams will only empty the number of bins that you have paid for. A notice will be left on bins to inform customers of the reason for the non-collection. 
8. If a bin is contaminated, the team will leave a notice on the bin to advise what needs to be removed before the next scheduled collection. 
9. If your bin has not been collected, and there is no notice on it to explain why, it may have been missed by our collection crew. You can report a missed collection online or email customer.services@nfdc.gov.uk. Missed collections must be reported by 12pm on the following working day after the scheduled collection day. We will send a vehicle back to collect your waste within 2 working days of it being reported. 
10. Teams will not return to collect bins that were presented for collection after 6am on collection day, in the wrong location or that were contaminated with materials that are not collected as part of this service. 
11. Our collection crew record and photograph the presentation of waste and recycling using the onboard in cab technology. Before returning to collect any reported missed bins, the system will be checked to ensure the waste was presented on time and in accordance with our collection policy. We will not return to collect a reported missed bin if it is not presented in line with our policy. 
12. All wheeled bins must be presented with the lid closed. They must not be overflowing or too heavy for the collection crew to manoeuvre safely.  A notice will be left on the bin stating why it has been left and residents will be required to remove the excess garden waste and wait for the next scheduled collection. 
13. The team will return the bin to the collection point after emptying. 
14. There may be exceptional circumstances (such as winter weather or unexpected road closures) that prevent garden waste collections taking place for safety or operational reasons. Information about changes to collections under these circumstances will be posted on our website and social media accounts. 
15. Garden waste can become stuck in the bin, this can happen in exceptional cold weather, or if the bin is overloaded with material that has become wedged. Operatives will attempt to empty the bin using the mechanical bin lift, but will not manually clear any material that does not empty. 
16. No refunds will be given for collections missed due to circumstances beyond our control.

Charging and cancellations 

1. The garden waste scheme is intended for use by domestic residents only.
2. Residents may join the garden waste collection service at any point during the year. The collection service works on a rolling year. All customers receive a full year's collections, the renewal payment is due at the same time the following year. View charges for the garden waste service from April 2024.
3. Subscriptions to the garden waste collection service are allocated to the customer and not the property. Subscriptions are not transferable between people. This means if you move house and the new owners wish to continue using the service they must subscribe themselves.
4. If you move to another property within the district, you must notify us within at least 10 working days before collections are required at the new address and take the bin with you. Failure to notify us in time may result in missed collections. 
5. If you move out of the New Forest district area, you can cancel your subscription to the service by emailing customer.services@nfdc.gov.uk 
6. The cost of the service is non-refundable. 
7. Failure to make payment to cover the next collection year by the renewal date stated in the reminder notice will result in the service being removed until payment is made. No refunds will be made for collections missed due to late payment. 
8. You will be sent a reminder in advance of the renewal date to renew your subscription. It is the responsibility of the customer to ensure contact details are up to date on their application or renewal. 

Key contacts

Email us at ​​​​​​customer.services@nfdc.gov.uk.

View other ways to contact us.

Find out how to make a complaint or give us feedback. 

Sign up for garden waste collections

Garden waste collections and composting