Recycling services

We offer recycling services for residents to recycle household items from their homes, including recyclable packaging, food waste, garden waste, small electricals, batteries and textiles.

Textiles

Clothes and textiles in good, reusable condition can be recycled in a number of ways:

  • Drop them off to the textile recycling point at Stafferton Way Household Waste and Recycling Centre.
  • Clothes in a good condition can be donated to charity shops. Never leave items outside if the shop is closed as this is classed as fly tipping and you could end up with a fine.  
  • Place clothes and textiles into a textile recycling bank, making sure that they are a reputable company and are recycling the textiles.

RBWM has teamed up Traid   – a charity which collects and sorts clothes for resale in their London-based charity shops and UK pop-up shops – to offer the free collection service across the borough.

Traid put unwanted clothes back into use, preventing thousands of tonnes of clothing from ending up in landfill, while the profits made from their resale go on to support projects that reduce the environmental and social impacts of clothing.

This raises vital funds for global projects to improve conditions and working practices in the textile industry.

What can you donate?

  • Clean, wearable clothes.
  • Shoes - paired.
  • Accessories – scarves, hats, gloves etc.
  • Sheets and household linen (excluding duvets and pillows).

You can book a collection for a minimum of one large bag or three small bags of clothing, but Traid encourages residents to donate more than the minimum amount, as this helps the charity to deliver a more efficient service.

This free service is open to all RBWM households, including those living in flats and flats above shops, and allows you to book a collection on a day that suits you.

Book a TRAID collection 
 

Kerbside collection

You can also recycle old clothes and textiles alongside your fortnightly rubbish collection service. 

We cannot collect damaged or soiled clothes, duvets and pillows or underwear other than socks.

We can only collect one bag from each house and we cannot collect textiles from blocks of flats - please book a Traid collection instead. 

Textiles are collected along with your rubbish bin every other week. They are placed in cages under the vehicle and kept separate from your rubbish, they are then sent off to be recycled.

The items we collect include:

  • Bedding.
  • Belts.
  • Blankets
  • Curtains.
  • Knitwear.
  • Old, worn clothing.
  • Shoes - paired.
  • Socks and tights.
  • Towels.
  • Unwanted handbags.

To use this fortnightly service:

  • Place your clean, dry clothes and textiles in bag clearly labelled "textiles" - please do not use charity branded bags.
  • Place the bag out, next to your rubbish bin on collection day - don't place the bag in your rubbish bin.