Worthing's bins are collected by Adur & Worthing Councils, the joint service for the two boroughs. Most homes have a dark grey or black-lidded refuse bin with one dot, a blue-lidded recycling bin with two dots or a blue box, and can pay for a green-lidded garden bin with three dots. Refuse is alternate weekly. Recycling is alternate weekly too, except some town centre properties where it is weekly. A weekly orange-lidded food bin is being rolled out in stages.
Last checked against 6 sources (www.adur-worthing.gov.uk).
What goes in each bin
Refuse bin with a dark grey or black lid · General waste
Bin · Every two weeks
Yes please
General household waste that cannot be recycled
Bagged food waste, including pet food, until a food caddy is in use
Solid fat, once it has cooled and been wrapped
Paper towel used to wipe residual cooking oil from pans
Not in this one
Anything that can be recycled
Garden waste
Hazardous waste
Clinical waste
Extra waste left beside the bin, except after a bank holiday or a weather-related missed collection
Electrical items, which have their own collection or go to the tip
Refuse bin with a dark grey or black lid · General waste
Every two weeks
Orange-lidded food waste bin · Food waste
Every week
Green-lidded garden waste bin · Garden waste
Every week
Food waste and the national recycling rules
Worthing does not collect food waste every week. Adur & Worthing Councils are introducing weekly food waste collections in stages from September 2026. Households due to start in September were sent a letter, and the council says anyone who did not get one is in phase two and will be told their start later. Refuse and recycling stay on the existing every-other-week pattern.
Garden waste is a paid-for service. A garden waste bin subscription costs £99.00 per year for 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027. That includes a 240 litre green-lidded wheelie bin. Council garden waste sacks, the only sacks the crews will take, cost £2.05 each and hold 75 litres. The green bin is collected weekly, apart from the first two weeks following Christmas and New Year. Extra garden waste beside the bin is not collected unless it is in one of the council's own sacks.
If the bin was not emptied, tell the councils within two working days. They will come back only if the miss was their mistake. Check the bin day page first, because that is where the report link appears. Put the bin out by 6:30am on the collection day. The bin day page says a missed collection can only be reported after 2:30pm on that day, and up to two days afterwards.
The refuse bin must be on the kerbside nearest the home and accessible from the road by 6:30am. Nothing extra is taken from beside it, except after a bank holiday or when a collection was missed because of bad weather. Take the bin back off the pavement the same working day.
Recycling has to be clean, dry, loose and squashed. Plastic bags are not allowed in the blue bin. Worthing will take coffee cups, cartons and non-black plant pots, but not shredded paper, black plant pots or milk bottles. Milk bottles are listed with the glass that cannot go in.
Small electrical items and bagged household batteries can be left next to the rubbish or recycling bin on collection day. They must not go inside either bin. Mobile phones, laptops, televisions, microwaves and large white goods are not part of that kerbside service.
Food waste starter packs for houses include a 23-litre grey bin with an orange lockable lid and a 5-litre kitchen caddy. Flats get the kitchen caddy, and a 140-litre orange-lidded bin in the bin store. Do not put the indoor caddy inside the outdoor bin. Line the caddy with compostable liners, newspaper or kitchen roll rather than plastic bags.
Garden waste is optional. The £99.00 yearly bin is collected weekly except for the first two weeks after Christmas and New Year. If you only have the occasional bag, council-logo sacks cost £2.05 and hold 75 litres, and other sacks are left behind.
The councils' app, funded with the West Sussex Waste Partnership, can remind you of collection day and say whether a named item can go in the blue-lidded bin. General enquiries go to the recycling and refuse team on 01903 851729.
As of 3 October 2026 the food waste page still described a staged start from September 2026, with phase two households waiting for their own start date. Check that page before you put a caddy out.
Bin questions in Worthing
How often are Worthing bins emptied?
Refuse is collected on alternate weeks. Recycling is collected on alternate weeks as well, except for some town centre properties where it is weekly. A subscribed green garden bin is weekly, apart from the first two weeks after Christmas and New Year. Food waste, once your address has started, is weekly on the same day as one of the other bins.
How much is a Worthing garden waste bin?
The subscription is £99.00 a year for 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027, and includes a 240 litre green-lidded bin. Council garden waste sacks are £2.05 each.
When can I report a missed bin in Worthing?
The bin day page says a missed collection can only be reported after 2:30pm on the collection day, and up to two days after the collection. The missed bin page says you need to tell the councils within two working days, and that they come back only if the miss was their mistake.
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