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Medway bin collection days

Medway collects refuse, recycling and food and garden waste every week on the same day, using separate vehicles. Refuse is put out in black sacks that residents buy, recycling goes in reusable blue and white bags or clear sacks, and a brown bin or a 23 litre food bin takes food and garden waste. All three recycling centres need a booked slot.

Last checked against 7 sources (www.medway.gov.uk).

What goes in each bin

Black sacks for rubbish (bought by residents) · General waste

Sack · Every week

Yes please

  • All non-recyclable rubbish, including disposable nappies, in strong black sacks

Not in this one

  • Black sacks inside a brown bin, a dustbin or any other container on collection day
  • Overfilled or weak sacks that can spill

Source: www.medway.gov.uk (opens in a new tab), read

Blue reusable recycling bag · Paper and card

Bag · Every week

Yes please

  • Magazines and newspapers
  • Telephone directories
  • Envelopes, junk mail and paper
  • Cardboard

Not in this one

  • Glass, cans, foil and plastics, which go in the white bag or clear sack

Source: www.medway.gov.uk (opens in a new tab), read

White reusable recycling bag or clear recycling sack · Mixed recycling

Bag · Every week

Yes please

  • Glass bottles and jars
  • Metal food and drink cans
  • Clean metal foil
  • Plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays

Not in this one

  • Paper and cardboard, which go in the blue bag

Source: www.medway.gov.uk (opens in a new tab), read

23 litre food waste bin or brown wheelie bin, with a 5 litre kitchen caddy · Food waste

Bin · Every week

Yes please

  • Meat and fish
  • Plate scrapings
  • Fruit and vegetable peelings and cores
  • Egg shells
  • Tea bags and coffee grounds

Not in this one

  • Black rubbish sacks, which stop a brown bin being emptied

Source: www.medway.gov.uk (opens in a new tab), read

Brown wheelie bin or brown garden sacks · Garden waste

Bin · Every week

Yes please

  • Grass and hedge clippings
  • Garden prunings and weeds
  • Small branches no more than 5cm across
  • Dead plants

Not in this one

  • Extra garden waste that does not fit the bin or sacks, which has not been taken since 2 June 2025
  • Garden waste in sacks other than the brown ones the council supplies

Source: www.medway.gov.uk (opens in a new tab), read

Check your bin day

We can’t check Medway addresses yet

Live bin day lookups for Medway are planned. Until then, Medway’s own page will show your collection day.

Find my bin day on www.medway.gov.uk(opens in a new tab)

How often each bin is collected

Collection frequency by bin for Medway
BinCollected
Black sacks for rubbish (bought by residents) · General wasteEvery week
Blue reusable recycling bag · Paper and cardEvery week
White reusable recycling bag or clear recycling sack · Mixed recyclingEvery week
23 litre food waste bin or brown wheelie bin, with a 5 litre kitchen caddy · Food wasteEvery week
Brown wheelie bin or brown garden sacks · Garden wasteEvery week

Food waste and the national recycling rules

Medway collects food waste every week. Houses have weekly food waste collections in a 23 litre bin or the brown wheelie bin. From 6 April 2026 all flats were due to get a new food waste service in either a 23 litre bin or a 140 litre shared brown bin, with a welcome pack and a year's supply of liners.

Source: www.medway.gov.uk (opens in a new tab), read

Garden waste

Garden waste arrangements vary across the area. One brown wheeled bin or two brown sacks of garden waste is collected free each week. Each additional brown bin costs a flat £40 for the subscription year from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027, whatever the start date, with up to three extra bins per eligible property. Additional bins run with the standard weekly service, and each needs its own permit on display.

Source: www.medway.gov.uk (opens in a new tab), read

If your bin was missed

Report online for rubbish, recycling, food and garden waste, assisted collections or clinical waste. Bulky items have their own form. The council will not come back for a brown bin that holds black sacks. Report no later than 4pm on the day after the missed collection; later reports wait for your next collection day. If your normal day is a Friday, the crew returns the following Monday. Waste must be out by 7am and no earlier than the evening before.

Source: www.medway.gov.uk (opens in a new tab), read

Your nearest tip

Good to know in Medway

  • Put everything out by 7am on collection day. For houses the council distinguishes front-garden and no-front-garden homes: with a front garden you can keep sacks in a dustbin between collections but must place them on the edge of the property on the day, never inside the brown bin.
  • The council supplies reusable blue and white recycling bags, a 5 litre kitchen caddy, brown garden sacks and the bins, free of charge. A roll of clear recycling sacks is delivered every 13 weeks and left close to the doorstep rather than posted through the letterbox.
  • Dry mixed recycling is taken to a Materials Recovery Facility in Southwark, London, which is where the council says the contents of the blue and white bags end up.
  • Since 2 June 2025 the council has not taken extra garden waste that does not fit the brown bin. For more, you can subscribe for extra brown bins, compost at home, or book a visit to a recycling centre.
  • Flats have either a shared blue recycling bin or clear sacks for cardboard, paper, glass, cans, foil and plastics, and from 6 April 2026 a new food waste service. Caddy liners cost £2.60 for a roll of 26 as of 3 October 2026.
  • Garden waste in the Medway subscription cannot be used by private gardeners, grounds maintenance companies or management agencies doing gardening or clearance work.

Bin questions in Medway

How often are bins collected in Medway?

Weekly. The council says refuse, recycling and garden or food waste are collected on a weekly schedule on the same day each week, using different vehicles.

What do flats in Medway recycle?

Cardboard, paper, magazines, newspapers, telephone directories, envelopes and junk mail, glass bottles and jars, metal food and drink cans, clean foil and plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays, in a shared blue bin or clear sacks.

Do I need to book the tip in Medway?

Yes. You book a slot online every time you visit one of Medway's three recycling centres, and there is no limit to how many visits you can book.

Guides that may help

Nearby councils