South Gloucestershire Council has announced significant changes to its recycling and waste services from August 2025. These follow the conclusion of its 25-year waste PFI contract with SUEZ Recycling and Recovery UK.
A new eight-year contract was awarded to SUEZ in November 2024. Under this contract, the council will resume control of the area’s Sort It recycling centres and waste disposal. SUEZ will continue to collect household recycling and waste. The new service model aims to improve the efficiency and value for money of collections.
From August 2025, around 85 per cent of residents will have a new collection day for black bins and recycling. For some, green waste may be collected on a different day to the black bin. A printed guide will be posted to households in July with details of the changes and the new collection dates.
A new monitoring system will track how the service is performing. A new council app will help residents check their collection calendar, get recycling advice and set collection reminders. Residents who use Alexa devices will be able to “ask Alexa” to find out more about their collections.
From May 2026, black bins will be collected every three weeks. Recycling and food waste will still be collected weekly. To help with the change, the council will launch a free fortnightly subscription for nappies and other absorbent hygiene products. Food waste collections will be expanded to flats, and soft plastic recycling will be rolled out to all households. New black bin vehicles will be introduced to help reduce carbon emissions.
Councillor Sean Rhodes, cabinet member responsible for recycling and waste at South Gloucestershire Council, said: “Our waste contract has changed, and with this change comes increased recycling options, more efficient and environmentally friendly collections, and ultimately better value for money.
“By taking over the Sort It centres and disposal facilities, the council will be able to retain more of the income from reclaimed materials, helping to offset some of the costs of waste collection.
“As we change over to the new system, this will likely mean changes to collection days. We understand that change can be challenging, so to help residents manage their waste during the transition, we’re producing a handy guide which will explain the changes and include the new collection dates.”
For more information visit www.southglos.gov.uk/recycling
