Sefton's standard service is two wheeled bins on alternate weeks: a grey bin for general waste and a brown bin where all recycling goes together. Green garden waste bins have their own round. There is no separate food waste collection yet, and the council has said caddies will start to arrive in winter 2026/27.
Last checked against 7 sources (www.sefton.gov.uk).
What goes in each bin
Grey bin or refuse sack · General waste
Bin · Every two weeks
Yes please
Most items that cannot be recycled or put in the green bin
Food waste, because Sefton does not yet collect it separately
Not in this one
Soil, rubble and building materials
Liquid waste including oils and paints
Hazardous waste, chemicals and weed killer
Furniture, hot ashes and car parts
Electrical items, batteries and fluorescent tubes or low energy light bulbs
Infectious materials and any item that does not fit in the bin or weighs more than 25kg
Brown bin or hessian recycling sack · Mixed recycling
Every two weeks
Food waste and the national recycling rules
Sefton does not collect food waste every week. As of 2 October 2026 Sefton did not collect food waste separately. The council said deliveries of indoor and outdoor food waste caddies would begin in winter 2026/27, with a weekly collection launching once deliveries are complete and the exact date still to be confirmed. Until then food goes in the grey bin or refuse sack.
Report a missed grey bin, refuse sacks, brown bin, hessian sacks or green garden waste bin through the council's My Services portal. Before reporting, check it is midday the day after the missed collection, that the right coloured bin was out at the agreed collection point by 6.30am, and that the lid was closed and the bin not overfilled or too heavy. You must report within 3 working days of the collection date. The council says it aims to return within 5 working days, and asks you to leave the bin out until the crew arrive. Cleansing do not return for a single missed green bin, only if the whole road was missed, and green bins can be collected up to 8pm.
Sefton's brown bin takes card, cartons, glass, metals, paper and plastics together, so there is no need to sort them. The only firm exclusion is plastic bags, which the council says cannot be separated and can damage equipment, so keep them out.
Some areas still use sacks. The council said that from Wednesday 23rd September 2026 homes in the Bootle West and Bootle East wards that had weekly black sack collections would move to alternate weekly wheeled bin collections, with bins delivered on Saturday 19th and Sunday 20th September 2026 and the collection day possibly changing. Hessian sacks are used for recycling where bins are not provided.
Put bins out at the agreed collection point by 6.30am, usually the kerbside with the handles facing the road. Lids must be fully closed, and extra bags of general waste or recycling left beside the bin are not collected. Anything that will not fit has to go to a tip.
Green garden waste wheelie bins can be emptied up to 8pm on collection day. The council says food waste must stay out of the green bin, because food in a load means the composting site rejects it.
Because food is not collected separately yet, the council's guidance is to put food waste in the grey bin or refuse sack. Its food waste page says collection will be weekly and free, and that liners can be plastic bags, biodegradable or not, which are removed during processing.
The four recycling centres are run by the Merseyside Recycling and Waste Authority. Cars do not need a booking, but vans and trailers between 2 and 3 metres do, and residents with a van of any size or a large trailer are limited to 12 visits over the year.
The council's contact centre number on its roll-out page is 0345 140 0845.
Bin questions in Sefton
How often are grey and brown bins collected in Sefton?
The council describes its standard service as alternate weekly wheeled bin collections: a grey bin for general waste and a brown bin for recyclable materials, collected on alternate weeks. Put the bin at the kerbside with the handles facing out by 6:30am.
Does Sefton collect food waste?
Not yet. As of 2 October 2026 the council said caddy deliveries would begin in winter 2026/27, after which weekly collections would start on a date still to be confirmed. Until then food waste goes in the grey bin or refuse sack.
How long do I have to report a missed bin in Sefton?
You must report it within 3 working days of the date the collection was due, and not before midday the day after. After that you wait for your next collection or take the waste to a household waste recycling centre.
BinWeek is paid for by Google ads on guide and council pages. Choose whether Google may store and read information on this device to show and measure ads. Until you choose, and if you reject, nothing is stored for advertising and no ad is shown. Your postcode and address never go to Google. Privacy policy