Tendring District Council has reported more than a doubling in the weight of recycling collected from green boxes during the first two weeks of its expanded kerbside recycling service.
The changes, introduced on 5 October as part of the authority’s waste and recycling contract with Veolia, have widened the range of materials accepted through household collections, including glass bottles and jars, cartons and plastic pots, tubs and trays.
Previously, glass bottles and jars had to be taken to separate recycling banks rather than being included in kerbside collections. The expanded service allows residents to recycle these materials from home alongside other accepted items.
Around 70,000 additional green recycling boxes were distributed to households ahead of the launch to accommodate the additional materials.
The early results were welcomed by Councillor Adrian Smith, Tendring District Council’s cabinet member for Environment, at a cabinet meeting on Friday, 23 October. He thanked residents and council staff for supporting the rollout.
The expansion forms part of the council’s new waste and recycling arrangements with Veolia and aligns with the Government’s Simpler Recycling reforms, which are intended to standardise household recycling collections across England.
For waste management operators and local authorities, the results provide an early indication of how changes to accepted materials and collection infrastructure can affect household recycling volumes. However, the initial figures cover only the first fortnight of the service, and longer-term data will be needed to assess its impact on overall recycling performance.
The council has reminded residents that broken glass is not accepted in green boxes and that boxes should not be overloaded, as collection crews lift them manually. Plastic film is expected to be added to the service in 2027.
The latest results follow the council’s initial announcement on the expanded scheme in August, when it confirmed that additional boxes would be delivered ahead of the October launch.
According to Defra statistics for 2024/25, the authority recorded a recycling rate of 39.10%.