How your new waste collection service will work

The new waste collection service will be introduced in phases with different areas starting at different times, from June 2025 to March 2026.

Each phase area will have waste collections operating from one of our 3 depots in Lymington, Ringwood or Hardley.

You can find out which phase you are in using your postcode.

What to expect from your new waste collections

Once your new waste collections start:

you will be able to recycle your food waste every week
recycling and rubbish will be collected on alternate weeks - we'll collect rubbish one week and recycling the next week
your glass collections will remain every 4 weeks, using your current black glass collection box
there will be changes to collection days, we'll write to you with your start date and collection days a few weeks before your new waste collections start

New bins and food waste caddies

Households will get:

a green-lid wheelie bin for recycling collections (240 litre)
a black-lid wheelie bin for rubbish collections (180 litre)
a brown outdoor food waste caddy for food waste collections (23 litre)
a grey indoor food waste caddy to store food waste in the kitchen (5 litre)

If you live in a property which shares communal bins, or we have assessed your property as unsuitable for wheelie bins, the waste containers you use for the new service may be different.

You can use our online tool to view when your new waste collections start and which waste containers your property will use. Find out when the new waste collections will start for your household.

This information is still pending for a small number of properties which have required further assessment. We are aiming to have finalised results for all properties by the end of February 2025.

Collection days

There will be changes to collection days, and we may collect your waste at a different time of the day than usual. Where possible, we will collect food waste on the same day as your alternate week recycling and rubbish collection, but it may be at a different time of the day.

We are confirming new and and improved collection routes for the new service. A few weeks before your new waste collections are due to start, we will write to you with your start date and collection days. Nearer the time, we will update our website with this information.

Find out What your bins and food waste caddies will look like

New food waste collections

We will collect your food waste every week. It will be recycled to create renewable energy and fertiliser.

You will use your brown outdoor food waste caddy for food waste collections, and your grey indoor food waste caddy to store food waste in your kitchen. If you live in a property which shares communal bins, or we have assessed your property as unsuitable for wheelie bins, the waste containers you use for food waste collections may be different.

Find out more about New food waste collections.

New recycling and rubbish collections

Recycling and general rubbish will be collected on alternate weeks - we'll collect rubbish one week and recycling the next week.

You will use your green-lid recycling bin for recycling collections, and black-lid rubbish bin for rubbish collections.

If you live in a property which shares communal bins, or we have assessed your property as unsuitable for wheelie bins, the waste containers you use for recycling and rubbish collections may be different.

New fortnightly limit on rubbish

Our current waste collection service of sacks has no restriction on how much rubbish can be collected.

To help encourage recycling and reduce waste in the district, there will be a limit on how much rubbish we collect from all properties in the district.

Eligible households will be able to apply for us for a larger or smaller bin.

Soon, we will update our website with a new collection policy for the new waste service. This will include details on criteria for different size bins, and how and when we will collect extra recycling. Please check back soon for updates.

If you need help putting your bins out

If you are unable to put your household waste out for collection due to a disability, illness or injury, you may be eligible for assisted
collections.

Find out more about assisted collections.

How we will keep you up-to-date

We're making these changes so together we can recycle food waste, throw away less, and create a more sustainable future for our district.

Before your new service starts, we will write to you with more information. This will include:

more details on how the service will work for you
when we'll deliver your bins and caddies
how to use your bins and caddies
available support, including how eligible households can apply for a different size bin
any changes to your collection days
your start date for the new service

Contact us

We are here to help, please get in touch with us if you have any questions about the changes.
Email: waste.changes@nfdc.gov.uk
Phone (waste changes enquiry line): 023 8028 5393