Westmorland and Furness covers three former district areas, and each still has its own bins: wheelie bins and red boxes in Barrow, blue bags and green canvas bags in Eden, and a blue bag with two blue boxes in South Lakeland. Garden waste is a subscription service, and food waste is not collected separately yet. Check which of the three areas your postcode sits in before reading the rules.
Last checked against 7 sources (www.westmorlandandfurness.gov.uk, www.legislation.gov.uk).
What goes in each bin
General rubbish: wheelie bin in Barrow and South Lakeland, blue bags in Eden · General waste
Bin · Varies by area, so check your address
Yes please
Household items that cannot be recycled
Ashes, once fully cooled and sealed in a bag
Not in this one
Garden waste
Vapes
Rubble, bricks, concrete and building waste
Vehicle batteries and all batteries
Paint cans and oil cans
Trade waste
Hazardous waste, including gas bottles, chemicals, clinical waste and syringes
Cans, foil, plastics and cartons: red bin in Barrow, green box and canvas bag in Eden, blue bag in South Lakeland · Mixed recycling
Bin
Yes please
Barrow: cans, foil, plastics, paper, card and cartons in the red wheelie bin
Eden: cans, tins, glass and foil in the green plastic box, and hard plastics such as bottles, yoghurt pots, trays, tubs and cartons in one green canvas bag
South Lakeland: plastic bottles, pots (not flower pots), tubs and trays, cans, foil, bottle and jar lids and cartons in the blue bag
Not in this one
Garden waste
Takeaway containers and greasy takeaway pizza boxes
Plastic bags, crisp and biscuit wrappers, polystyrene and bubble wrap
Collection frequency by bin for Westmorland and Furness
Bin
Collected
General rubbish: wheelie bin in Barrow and South Lakeland, blue bags in Eden · General waste
Varies by area, so check your address
Garden waste wheelie bin (subscription) · Garden waste
Every two weeks
Food waste and the national recycling rules
Westmorland and Furness has a transitional arrangement for weekly food waste. The council has no separate food waste collection in the pages read. It is listed in the schedule to the Environment Act 2021 (Commencement No. 9 and Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2024 with a later date of 4 June 2034 for separate weekly food waste collections.
Garden waste is a paid-for service. There is an annual subscription of £60 per bin, paid in full when you sign up, with no instalments and no mid-year discount. Each extra bin costs a one-off £25 plus the £60 subscription. Collections are every two weeks between April and March, with none in December, January and February: up to 20 collections over the 40-week subscription period. The subscription does not renew automatically. The council collected unsubscribed garden bins as a grace period between 1 April and 28 June 2026, and now needs a valid sticker under the handle.
Report it on the council's online form for your area (Barrow, Eden or South Lakeland), or by phone to your local waste and recycling team. Before you report, check it was out on the right day, was visible at the kerbside, held the correct items, had no sticker from the crew and had its lid closed. For a garden waste bin, also check there is a valid subscription sticker and that the bin is one the council issued. The council asks you to check its service status updates first, because flooding, snow and ice, blocked roads and vehicle breakdowns can delay a round. Eden residents can also report a missing replacement blue bag.
Barrow households get a small wheelie bin emptied weekly, a red 240 litre wheelie bin and a red box for mixed glass. Eden gets weekly blue bags, a green plastic box and two green canvas bags. South Lakeland gets a 240 litre wheelie bin emptied every two weeks, one blue recycling bag and two blue recycling boxes.
In Eden you can buy a hessian gull and vermin proof sack with a sealable lid for £12.80, holding several blue bags. Tie the blue bags, close the lid, put the sack out by 6am and take it back in after it is emptied.
The council's guidance is to put bins and boxes out only the evening before collection, leave a bin near the highway if you live at the end of a long private drive, and secure bags and boxes in windy weather. Recycling must be loose, with boxes folded flat, and without plastic bags or food wrappings.
On 3 October 2026 the council's service updates listed a disruption to the green and recycling round at Lowick Bridge on Friday 02 October because of roadworks, and, on Monday 28 September, garden waste bins that could not be collected around Cartmel and Grange-over-Sands after a vehicle breakdown. In both cases residents were asked to leave bins out.
Ashes can go in the general waste bin if left to cool completely and placed in a bag. Vapes, building waste, paint cans and batteries cannot.
You can use any of the 14 household waste recycling centres across Westmorland and Furness and Cumberland, but a waste permit has to be applied for through your own council. The council says to check its HWRC visitor rules before going.
Bin questions in Westmorland and Furness
How much is garden waste collection in Westmorland and Furness?
An annual subscription costs £60 per bin, paid in full on sign-up. Extra bins cost a one-off £25 plus £60 a year. Collections are fortnightly from April to March with no rounds in December, January and February.
Does Westmorland and Furness collect food waste?
Not in the pages read on 3 October 2026. The council is listed in the national transitional schedule with a later start date of 4 June 2034 for separate food waste collections.
Where can I see bin collection disruptions in Westmorland and Furness?
The council publishes service updates on its bins page, including road works and vehicle breakdowns affecting rounds, and asks residents to leave bins out when a round is delayed.
How often is general rubbish collected in Westmorland and Furness?
It depends on the area: weekly in Barrow and Eden, and every two weeks in South Lakeland, according to the council's bin types page.
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