Rescue your recycling this Recycle Week

This year's Recycle Week theme, 'Rescue Me! Recycle!' encourages people to recycle all they can by highlighting items regularly thrown away in general waste that can be recycled.  

While most households in Hillingdon sort their recycle well, items that the council can't recycle can sometimes still be found in clear, dry, mixed recycling sacks by collection crews. To help residents eliminate those, the council's 'Top of the Contaminants' campaign highlights how items, like food and clothing, can be recycled through other services it offers. 

To make it easier for residents to recycle household items, the council offers weekly rubbish and recycling collections, garden and food waste recycling, small electrical bins in libraries and doorstep textiles collections in partnership with the textiles charity, Traid. Harefield Civic Amenity Site also has dedicated bins for vapes and coffee pods. 

By taking two seconds to carefully check what's going into their clear sacks, residents can play their part and help ensure that what goes to the processing plant is of high quality. 

Hands-on guidance for repairing clothes and small electrical items will be available to visitors to the council's free Repair and Reuse Day at Botwell Green Leisure Centre in Hayes, on Saturday 27 September, from 11am to 2pm.  

The council's recycling team is hosting a Recycling Roadshow at the event where you can get useful hints, tips and advice for household recycling and sign up for services, including automatic bag deliveries and food waste collections.    

By taking small steps to rescue recyclables and remove contaminants residents can make a big contribution to improving recycling in Hillingdon. 

Cllr Eddie Lavery, Hillingdon Council's Cabinet Member for Community and Environment, said: "It's great that so many households in Hillingdon already do their best to sort and separate what they can. While for some items, like sanitary products, going in the waste bin is the only option, for most other items from small electricals to coffee pods and batteries, the council offers a recycling solution. 

"Recycle Week's campaign encourages not throwing away recyclable items. By also removing 'top contaminants' and properly disposing of non-recyclables, we can ensure we are collecting high quality recycling and reducing waste, which is better for the planet." 

Find out what you can and can't recycle in Hillingdon at www.hillingdon.gov.uk/dry-mixed-recycling.