Skip to main content

West Lancashire bin collection days

West Lancashire uses a grey bin or sack for rubbish, a blue bin for plastics, glass and metals, and a green bin for paper and cardboard. Garden waste is a paid brown bin. Weekly food waste caddies have been in use since the end of March 2026, collected on the same weekday as the other bins. The council's pages do not state a separate cycle for the grey, blue or green bins, and send you to the Your West Lancashire panel for the dates at your address.

Last checked against 5 sources (www.westlancs.gov.uk).

What goes in each bin

Grey bin or refuse sack · General waste

Bin · Varies by area, so check your address

Yes please

  • Household waste that cannot be recycled
  • Plastic bags and packaging
  • Nappies
  • Polystyrene packaging
  • Bagged pet waste

Not in this one

  • Garden waste
  • Soil
  • Electrical items or batteries
  • Building waste such as rubble, bricks and plasterboard
  • Hazardous waste such as asbestos, car batteries, paint and oil
  • Clinical waste

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

Blue bin for plastics, glass and metals · Mixed recycling

Bin

Yes please

  • Plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays
  • Glass bottles and glass jars
  • Tin cans, clean foil and aerosols
  • Toothpaste tubes
  • Tetra Pak and other food and drink cartons

Not in this one

  • Plastic bags, which the council says contaminate the recycling bin
  • Plastic film, and plastic that still has food on it
  • Carrier bags, buckets, pipes, toys, polystyrene, clingfilm and crisp packets
  • Black plastic plant pots and bubble wrap

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

Green bin for paper and cardboard · Paper and card

Bin

Yes please

  • Paper, newspapers, magazines, catalogues, leaflets and junk mail
  • Cardboard, cardboard egg boxes, and kitchen roll and toilet roll tubes
  • Shredded paper
  • Envelopes once any plastic window has been removed
  • Paper gift wrap, and Christmas and birthday cards that are not foil or plastic

Not in this one

  • Foil and plastic Christmas and birthday cards, which go in the grey bin
  • Gift wrap that is glittered, foiled or plastic

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

Food waste caddy · Food waste

Caddy · Every week

Yes please

  • Uneaten food and plate scrapings
  • Dairy such as yoghurt and cheese
  • Bread, cakes and pastries
  • Raw and cooked meat and bones, and fish including bones
  • Tea bags and coffee grounds
  • Fruit and vegetables, including peelings
  • Rice, pasta, beans and eggs

Not in this one

  • Packaging of any kind
  • Liquids such as milk
  • Oil or liquid fat
  • Anything that is not food, including plastic packaging
  • Animal waste
  • Flowers or garden waste

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

Brown garden waste bin · Garden waste

Bin · Every two weeks

Yes please

  • Leaves
  • Weeds
  • Grass cuttings
  • Twigs and small branches
  • Cut flowers

Not in this one

  • Food waste, which goes in the food waste caddy
  • Plastic
  • Turf
  • Stones and rubble
  • Soil, including soil from around roots

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

Check your bin day

We can’t check West Lancashire addresses yet

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

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

How often each bin is collected

Collection frequency by bin for West Lancashire
BinCollected
Grey bin or refuse sack · General wasteVaries by area, so check your address
Food waste caddy · Food wasteEvery week
Brown garden waste bin · Garden wasteEvery two weeks

Food waste and the national recycling rules

West Lancashire collects food waste every week. Weekly food waste collections started in West Lancashire from 31 March 2026, on the same day as the grey bin or sack and the green and blue recycling bins. Houses get a 23 Litre lockable outdoor caddy and a 7 Litre indoor caddy. Communal properties get a 240 Litre shared food bin as well as the indoor caddy. Plastic bags can be used as liners because they are separated at the plant. The refuse and recycling hub still has an older line saying food waste collections were coming in March 2026.

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

Garden waste

Garden waste is a paid-for service. For 2026/27 the charge is £47.50 per brown bin for the year from 1 June 2026 until 31 May 2027, including extra bins. Joining part way through the year costs the same. There are no concessions. A brown bin costs £25 if you do not already have one. You can cancel within 14 calendar days of signing up. Brown bins are emptied every two weeks except for the winter pause from 1st December 2026 until 1st February 2027. On 15 July 2026 the council agreed an extra 4 weeks of collections through February, which it describes as an extra 2 collections. Put the bin out by 7.00am.

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

If your bin was missed

Report a missed bin through your self-serve account, and only from 6pm on the collection day. Do not report it if the council has already published a revised day. Missed food waste is not collected until the next scheduled food day, so keep the outdoor caddy locked and in the shade. A replacement wheelie bin costs £25 each. Leave bins at the usual point by 7.00am, lid closed and handles facing outwards. Reports open at 6pm on the day the collection should have happened.

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

Good to know in West Lancashire

  • Blue-bin recycling goes in loose. If you collect it in a plastic bag, empty the bag into the bin and put the bag in the grey bin. The what-goes page says plastics marked 1, 2 or 5 in the recycling triangle belong in the blue bin, and that food residue or plastic film can stop an item being recycled. The A-Z adds a longer no-list for the blue bin, including carrier bags, polystyrene, clingfilm, crisp packets, black plant pots and bubble wrap.
  • The green bin takes paper and card, including shredded paper and paper gift wrap. Foil or plastic cards, and glittered, foiled or plastic gift wrap, go in the grey bin. The what-goes page lists the green bin contents but does not give that green bin its own no-list. Those rejects are on the A-Z.
  • The grey bin is for waste that cannot be recycled: plastic bags and packaging, nappies, polystyrene and bagged pet waste. Garden waste, soil, electricals, batteries, rubble, hazardous waste and clinical waste stay out. Gas bottles and batteries must not go in any recycling bin. The council points batteries to a recycling centre or a shop take-back point.
  • Food caddies take the usual leftovers, including tea bags, but not milk, oil, liquid fat, packaging, animal waste or garden waste. Write the house number on the outdoor caddy. Tie a liner to the handle when you need another roll. The A-Z of recycling still sends tea bags to the grey bin or to compost, which does not match the later food waste page.
  • Garden waste for 2026/27 is £47.50 per bin until 31 May 2027, with no concession and no cheaper part-year price. The winter pause on the garden page runs from 1st December 2026 until 1st February 2027, and the council says a decision on 15 July 2026 added an extra 4 weeks through February. The older what-goes page still says the pause lasts until 28th February 2027. Use the garden page for the season.
  • As of 3 October 2026 the refuse page listed a one-day delay for rural west food collections and said extra recycling could be left beside the blue or green bin while collections catch up, with paper and card kept separate from plastics, glass and metals. That is a disruption notice, not the standing rule. A replacement wheelie bin is £25.

Bin questions in West Lancashire

How often is the West Lancashire grey bin emptied?

The refuse page does not say. It tells you to use the Your West Lancashire panel for your own dates, and to put bins out by 7.00am. Food waste is weekly and is collected on the same day as the grey bin and the green and blue recycling bins.

How much is a West Lancashire garden waste bin?

£47.50 per brown bin for 1 June 2026 to 31 May 2027. Extra bins are £47.50 each. A new brown bin is £25. Collections are every two weeks except the winter pause, and there are no concessions.

When can I report a missed West Lancashire bin?

Only from 6pm on the collection day, through the self-serve account. If a revised day has been published, do not report it. A missed food caddy waits until the next scheduled food collection.

Guides that may help

Nearby councils