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Southend-on-Sea bin collection days

Southend-on-Sea splits household recycling by lid colour and alternates it week by week. The pink lid bin for plastic, glass and cans and the blue lid bin for paper and card are each emptied every two weeks, on opposite weeks, while the blue food waste bin goes out every week. The black bin for everything else is emptied every two weeks, and garden waste is a separate paid weekly service.

Last checked against 9 sources (www.southend.gov.uk).

What goes in each bin

Black bin · General waste

Bin · Every two weeks

Yes please

  • Items that cannot be recycled
  • Non-recyclable rubbish, ideally bagged first to keep the bin clean

Not in this one

  • Recycling that belongs in the pink-lid, blue-lid or blue food waste bins
  • Asbestos
  • Gas cylinders and tyres

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

Pink lid bin · Mixed recycling

Bin · Every two weeks

Yes please

  • Plastic
  • Glass
  • Cans

Not in this one

  • Paper and card, which go in the blue lid bin
  • Recycling tied up inside bags, because items must be loose, clean and dry

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

Blue lid bin · Paper and card

Bin · Every two weeks

Yes please

  • Paper
  • Card, with boxes flattened

Not in this one

  • Other mixed recycling, which goes in the pink lid bin
  • Recycling in bags
  • Extra cardboard larger than the bin

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

Blue food waste bin and kitchen caddy · Food waste

Caddy · Every week

Yes please

  • Leftovers and plate scrapings
  • Noodles, rice and pasta
  • Eggs and egg shells
  • Out-of-date food with the packaging removed
  • Bread, biscuits and pastries
  • Tea bags, tea leaves and coffee grounds
  • Raw and cooked fish, meat and bones
  • Cheese and butter
  • Fruit and vegetable peelings, raw or cooked

Not in this one

  • Carrier bags, because they are not compostable
  • Food left outside the bin

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

Green garden waste bin or compostable sack (subscription) · Garden waste

Bin · Every week

Yes please

  • Grass cuttings
  • Leaves
  • Tree, shrub and rose prunings
  • Branches up to 12 inches long and 1 inch across
  • Cut flowers
  • Weeds
  • Windfall fruit

Not in this one

  • Stones and soil
  • Plastic bags of any kind
  • Pre-treated wood
  • Concrete and bricks
  • Metal and glass
  • Animal waste
  • Garden ornaments
  • Food waste of any kind except windfall fruit

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

Check your bin day

We can’t check Southend-on-Sea addresses yet

Live bin day lookups for Southend-on-Sea are planned. Until then, Southend-on-Sea’s own page will show your collection day.

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

How often each bin is collected

Collection frequency by bin for Southend-on-Sea
BinCollected
Black bin · General wasteEvery two weeks
Pink lid bin · Mixed recyclingEvery two weeks
Blue lid bin · Paper and cardEvery two weeks
Blue food waste bin and kitchen caddy · Food wasteEvery week
Green garden waste bin or compostable sack (subscription) · Garden wasteEvery week

Food waste and the national recycling rules

Southend-on-Sea collects food waste every week. Southend-on-Sea collects food waste every week in a blue bin, with a smaller blue kitchen caddy for indoors and free compostable liners delivered every six months. It sits alongside the paper and card and mixed recycling bins as part of the new kerbside service the council introduced in 2025.

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

Garden waste

Garden waste is a paid-for service. As of 3 October 2026 a 12-month garden waste subscription costs £68.50. A new customer who needs a bin also buys a 240-litre garden waste bin for £40, and compostable garden waste sacks cost £11.00 for a roll of 10. A second bin needs its own subscription. Subscriptions run for 12 months from the date you join and are not refunded if cancelled. Garden waste is collected weekly for the 12 months of the subscription. Collections are suspended for three weeks over the Christmas and New Year period. Your garden waste day may differ from your recycling and rubbish day.

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

If your bin was missed

Check your collection calendar or the council's waste app to confirm you were due a collection, that everything was on the inside edge of your property by 7am, that it went out on the correct day, that you used the right container and that no tag explains why it was left. Then wait until 6pm on your collection day and use the online missed collection form. You do not need a MySouthend account. If the collection vehicles are still on their way you cannot raise a report. Report it after 6pm on the collection day and within 2 working days of the scheduled collection.

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

Your nearest tip

Good to know in Southend-on-Sea

  • Put bins out on the inside edge of your property by 7am on collection day, not on the pavement, verge or road, which can lead to enforcement action and fixed penalty notices. Food waste bins should not go out earlier than the evening before. If you forget, the crew cannot come back.
  • One recycling lorry collects each week: pink lid bin and food waste in one week, blue lid bin and food waste in the next. A second lorry takes the black bin every two weeks and a third takes the garden waste bin, so each may arrive at a different time of day.
  • Flats and homes that cannot hold wheelie bins stay on loose sacks collected weekly alongside food and rubbish. Every six months these households receive pink recycling sacks, and everyone gets food waste liners and textile recycling sacks. Purpose-built blocks of flats follow a separate recycling in flats page.
  • Keep recycling loose, clean and dry, with boxes flattened. The council advises against bagging it because it slows the collection. Extra flattened cardboard can be folded neatly next to the blue lid bin, but only pieces no larger than the bin.
  • Fridges and freezers are temporarily not accepted on bulky bookings or at Leigh Marshes because of a national shortage of treatment capacity. Stock Road still takes them, and the council asks residents to delay disposal where possible.
  • Each household can book one free bulky collection per service year, which runs from 1 April to 31 March. It covers up to five items or one combined item such as a three-piece suite. A single bulky item costs £15 to book, up to three cost £40 and up to five cost £60.
  • The tips are for Southend-on-Sea residents only and you must show a valid driving licence or a council tax bill for the current year. Both sites are closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day. As of 3 October 2026 the pages read gave no dated Christmas collection timetable.

Bin questions in Southend-on-Sea

How often are bins collected in Southend-on-Sea?

Food waste is collected every week. The pink lid recycling bin and the blue lid paper and card bin are each collected every two weeks, on alternate weeks. The black bin is collected every two weeks and garden waste weekly for subscribers.

What goes in the pink lid bin in Southend-on-Sea?

Plastic, glass and cans. Paper and card go in the blue lid bin, and items should be loose, clean and dry rather than bagged.

How much is garden waste collection in Southend-on-Sea?

A 12-month subscription costs £68.50. A new customer who needs a bin buys one for £40, and sacks are £11.00 for a roll of 10. Collections are weekly apart from three weeks at Christmas.

How much does bulky waste collection cost in Southend-on-Sea?

Each household has one free collection per service year for up to five items. A single bulky item costs £15 to book, up to three cost £40 and up to five cost £60.

Where are the Southend-on-Sea tips and what ID do I need?

Stock Road in Southend-on-Sea (SS2 5QF) and Leigh Marshes in Leigh-on-Sea (SS9 2ET). Residents must show a valid driving licence or a current-year council tax bill.

Guides that may help

Nearby councils