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Derry City and Strabane bin collection days

Derry City and Strabane collects from over 60,000 households, from depots at Skeoge and Strahans Road. The black bin and the blue recycling bin are fortnightly on alternate weeks. The brown wheelie bin, for food and garden waste together, is also fortnightly. Homes that still have a brown food caddy are collected weekly. The council is still giving brown wheelie bins to households that do not have one.

Last checked against 3 sources (recycling.derrystrabane.com).

What goes in each bin

Black wheelie bin for general waste · General waste

Bin · Every two weeks

Yes please

  • Household waste that is not allowed in the blue bin or the brown bin

Not in this one

  • Hazardous waste such as motor oil, motor vehicle batteries, asbestos, used paint, building and construction waste, dead animals and medical or clinical waste
  • Stones, concrete, trees, clay and car engines, which the council says damage the collection vehicle
  • Extra waste beside the bin

Source: recycling.derrystrabane.com (opens in a new tab), read

Blue wheelie bin for mixed dry recycling · Mixed recycling

Bin · Every two weeks

Yes please

  • Paper, including newspapers, magazines, brochures, catalogues, phone books, cards, envelopes, junk mail, books, office paper and disposable paper plates
  • Cardboard and light card, including cereal boxes and toilet roll ends
  • Washed food and drink cans, empty aerosols, and rinsed plastic bottles, pots, trays, takeaway containers and cartons
  • Empty rinsed glass bottles and jars, including broken bottles and jars, with lids left on, and metal bottle tops

Not in this one

  • Plastic bags, tissues, envelope windows, nappies, household batteries, car batteries, food waste, polystyrene and general rubbish
  • Duvets, quilts, televisions, computer monitors, microwaves, small electrical items and textiles
  • Hazardous waste, building waste, dead animals and medical waste

Source: recycling.derrystrabane.com (opens in a new tab), read

Brown food caddy, or compostable liners in the brown wheelie bin · Food waste

Caddy · Every week

Yes please

  • Raw and cooked meat and fish, including bones, fruit and vegetables, dairy, eggs, bread, cakes, pastries, rice, pasta and beans
  • Uneaten food, tea bags and coffee grounds
  • Food bagged in a compostable liner

Not in this one

  • Packaging, plastic bags, liquids, and oil or liquid fat

Source: recycling.derrystrabane.com (opens in a new tab), read

Brown wheelie bin for mixed food and garden waste · Garden waste

Bin · Every two weeks

Yes please

  • Leaves, grass, cold ashes, twigs, weeds and flowers, placed loose and not bagged
  • Fruit and vegetables, bread, meat and bones, dairy, egg shells, tea bags and coffee grounds in a compostable liner
  • Torn pizza boxes and kitchen roll

Not in this one

  • Plastic packaging, plastic bottles, glass, liquids, oil and liquid fat, and plastic plant pots
  • Soil and rubble
  • Garden waste in a bag

Source: recycling.derrystrabane.com (opens in a new tab), read

Check your bin day

Use Derry City and Strabane’s own page for your bin day

BinWeek's lookup service has no supported way to read this council's collection dates, so the page links to the council's own finder.

Find my bin day on recycling.derrystrabane.com(opens in a new tab)

Set your own bin day

These dates are the ones you enter. BinWeek does not get them from Derry City and Strabane. Check them on the council’s site (opens in a new tab) (recycling.derrystrabane.com).

Black wheelie bin for general waste · General waste

The council’s pages say this is collected every two weeks. Your round may differ, so use the pattern you were given.

Blue wheelie bin for mixed dry recycling · Mixed recycling

The council’s pages say this is collected every two weeks. Your round may differ, so use the pattern you were given.

Brown food caddy, or compostable liners in the brown wheelie bin · Food waste

The council’s pages say this is collected every week. Your round may differ, so use the pattern you were given.

Brown wheelie bin for mixed food and garden waste · Garden waste

The council’s pages say this is collected every two weeks. Your round may differ, so use the pattern you were given.

Add to calendar

A private calendar link for the pattern you entered, with an alert at 6pm the evening before. The link contains those days. BinWeek does not keep a copy, and anyone with the link can see them.

Email me the night before

You can still add these days to your calendar.

How often each bin is collected

Collection frequency by bin for Derry City and Strabane
BinCollected
Black wheelie bin for general waste · General wasteEvery two weeks
Blue wheelie bin for mixed dry recycling · Mixed recyclingEvery two weeks
Brown food caddy, or compostable liners in the brown wheelie bin · Food wasteEvery week
Brown wheelie bin for mixed food and garden waste · Garden wasteEvery two weeks

Garden waste

Garden waste is collected free of charge. Garden waste is collected with food waste in the brown wheelie bin, loose rather than bagged. Homes without that bin keep using a food caddy. The council says collections are fortnightly, on the black or blue bin day in most areas, with a small number of areas on a different day.

Source: recycling.derrystrabane.com (opens in a new tab), read

If your bin was missed

The bin collections page says to register a problem or complaint on 028 7137 4107 so the council can act. The same number is given for food-waste questions. There is also an online report form, but the form page itself does not explain missed collections. Put the bin at the kerb by 7am, handles facing the road.

Source: recycling.derrystrabane.com (opens in a new tab), read

Your nearest tip

Good to know in Derry City and Strabane

  • Wheel the bin to the kerb by 7am, handles facing the road. The council says the bin should be large enough that extra waste is not needed, and a recycling bin with the wrong items is left unemptied.
  • Food in the brown bin or caddy stays in a compostable liner. Garden waste goes in loose. The what-goes-in-my-bin page lists small amounts of soil as accepted in the brown bin, while the bin collections page says not to put soil or rubble in it.
  • Areas that already have a large brown bin put food in that bin, still bagged in a compostable liner, on the garden collection day. Areas without one keep the caddy. The what-goes page says crews are distributing 4,000 brown bins to rural homes.
  • A note tied to the handle, or a call to 028 7137 4107, is how the council says to ask for more brown-bin bags. The same number is the contact for a problem with the service.
  • Opening times from 28 September 2026 are on the recycling centre page. Eglinton and Glendermott Road have no access for trailers. The page lists further centres at Strathfoyle, Claudy, Donemana, Newtownstewart, Spamount Playing Fields, Park and Plumbridge.
  • The bin collections page's service summary says black and blue bins are fortnightly. Later presentation paragraphs on the same page still say 'weekly collection'. The summary is the frequency used here.

Bin questions in Derry City and Strabane

How often are the black and blue bins collected?

Fortnightly, on alternate weeks. The brown wheelie bin is fortnightly as well, usually on a black or blue week. The food caddy is weekly.

Can I put glass in the blue bin?

Yes. Empty rinsed glass bottles and jars, including broken ones, with lids left on. The blue bin is also for paper, card, cans, aerosols, cartons and plastic bottles, pots and trays.

What time should the bin be out in Derry and Strabane?

By 7am, at the kerb, with the handles facing the road. The same time applies to the large brown bin and the food caddy.

Where are the recycling centres?

The opening times page, updated from 28 September 2026, lists centres including Eglinton, Glendermott Road, Pennyburn, Strahans Road and Strathfoyle. Eglinton and Glendermott Road do not take trailers.

Guides that may help

Nearby councils