Garden waste
Service update
Garden collections resumed on Monday 11 May on usual collection days.
- Please do not put any garden waste next to the bin. If your bin is very heavy, or the lid won’t close, please take some garden waste out and store for the next collection.
- Your bin may be emptied at a different time than usual, so please put it out by 6:30am.
- Note that the service is not operating at full capacity.
- For more service updates relating to waste, see our bin updates page.
Garden waste contract extensions
To compensate subscribers for the garden waste collections that could not be made due to coronavirus, garden waste contracts in Chiltern, South Bucks and Wycombe areas (Wycombe 2nd bin subscriptions), will automatically be extended by 2 months. The extension period will cover all of the collections subscribers did not receive due to the service being suspended.
When will the service restart?
The garden service resumed on Monday 11 May on usual collection days.
Why don't I get my money back straight away?
There is significant administrative cost to issuing refunds for each collection that could not be made due to coronavirus. It is much more cost effective to extend renewal periods, which will give subscribers the full amount of collections they paid for when they last subscribed to the service.
What if new customers start after the suspension is lifted?
Any new customers will pay the standard renewal fee and date. They will not have experienced service disruption, so will not receive any compensation or extension to the service.
Will I get a new sticker (2nd bin subscribers)?
No, you will not get a new sticker for the 2 month extension. The crew will continue to collect your bin taking into account this extension period. For example, if your subscription expired at the end of April, your bin will be collected without a new sticker until the end of June.
When you renew after the 2 month extension, you will receive a new sticker with a full year's subscription to the service.
What if my subscription ended/ends during the suspension?
All residents will receive a 2 month extension to their subscription. For subscriptions that expired in March, these will be due for renewal at the end of May.
Can I just cancel and get my money back?
Payment for the garden waste subscription is in advance and there are no refunds given throughout the year. This will remain the case and as all subscriptions will be compensated, allowing refunds are not necessary.
You can recycle your garden waste with our kerbside collection.
Collection details
We collect garden waste every two weeks.
Place it loose in your:
- green wheeled bins
- green reusable bags (for households where wheeled bins are not suitable)
- green bins for flats
We will provide a separate garden waste collection subject to an assessment or request.
We collect
- garden waste – fallen fruit, leaves, grass clippings
- cuttings – small branches (maximum diameter 6 centimetres), twigs and tree pruning, hedge trimmings
- non-noxious weeds, dead plants and flowers
We send garden waste for composting.
We can’t collect
- plastic carrier bags or bin liners
- compostable liners
- food waste
- paper or cardboard
- rabbit, guinea pig or chicken bedding
- large branches or timber
- soil, turf or rubble
- plant pots
- noxious weeds like Japanese Knotweed
- plants containing toxins such as but not limited to Rhododendron, Yew, Ragwort and Hemlock
- plants treated with agricultural chemicals
Please don’t use plastic, paper or corn starch bags to line the whole or part of the bin as the compost facility won’t accept these.
Extra garden bin
You can order a second garden waste bin at a cost of £70 per year.
To order a second garden waste bin, please visit the garden waste payment page (on the Chiltern area website).
Top tips
Please be careful:
- not to overload your green bin or compress too much green waste into it as overweight bins cannot be emptied
- we are only be able to empty the green bin once the weight has been reduced
Contact information