Council challenges residents to bin less, recycle more

Residents can sign up now to take part in the challenge which will run from Monday 26 September to Sunday 23 October to monitor the amount of waste and recycling their household produces and send the results back to the council each week.  In return, they will receive regular tips on ways to reduce waste; along with advice on recycling everything from food to furniture.

The household that generates the least amount of general waste throughout the month will be in with a chance of winning a zero-waste starter pack worth £40 that comes complete with bamboo cutlery, stainless steel water bottle, reusable coffee cup and a natural bristle wooden dish brush and replacement head.

As well as the Zero Waste Challenge, the council is also hosting a free Repair and Reuse Day on Saturday 24 September at Botwell Green Sports and Leisure Centre, in Hayes.

Residents can turn up any time between 10am and 2pm to learn recycling tips and tricks from the council's recycling team and local groups, including Hillingdon Friends of the Earth, who will be offering a free repair service for small electrical items, and the textiles charity TRAID, who will be demonstrating how to repair and alter clothes to extend their lifetime.

Cllr Eddie Lavery, Hillingdon Council's Cabinet Member for Residents' Services, said: "Hillingdon residents have already risen to the challenge of reducing their general waste, in just a year you've managed to reduce the borough's general waste by more than 2,000 tonnes and helped us to recycle nearly 3,000 tonnes of food waste, so well done to everyone for their efforts so far.

"Now, we're encouraging residents to sign up for our first ever Zero Waste Challenge to see if we can all go a step closer in our collective journey to bin less, recycle more. I'm expecting to learn a lot throughout the challenge and I'm confident that collectively, we'll all be able to make some sustainable changes for the better."

To sign up, visit www.hillingdon.gov.uk/zero-waste.  Once you have signed up, you will receive weekly emails with advice on how to reduce waste, reuse items and recycle at home.

As part of Hillingdon Council's commitment to making its services carbon neutral by 2030, waste and recycling collection days will be changing for more than half of the borough from Monday 31 October.  All affected households will be contacted by letter soon and further information will also be available on the council website and at venues across Hillingdon.