Northumberland County Council

Garden waste

Collection information and dates for garden waste.

Subscribing to our garden waste kerbside collection service can save you time and fuel, as well as mess in your vehicle.

Our service covers most of Northumberland and operates from early March to the end of November/beginning of December. Please click here to view upcoming garden waste collection dates.

Garden waste terms and conditions

Please click here to see our garden waste terms and conditions.

Please note: Garden waste bins are property of Northumberland County Council. If you no longer require this service, please call us on 0345 600 6400 so we can collect your brown bin.

How to subscribe

Please note: Garden waste subscriptions for 2021 are now closed. If you already subscribe to the garden waste collection scheme, you will receive a yearly invitation in January to re-join and pay for your subscription, complete with information on collection dates.

If you have renewed your subscription, please allow 7 days for your sticker to arrive. If it does not arrive, please let us know by calling us on 0345 600 6400.

What can I put in my garden waste bin?

Yes please	No thanks
Grass cuttings	Plastic bags or bin bags
Shrubs	Plant pots or plastic trays
Leaves	Kitchen waste or food waste
Weeds	Soil, bricks or rubble
Flowers and plants	Nappies
Hedge clippings	Paper, plastic or cardboard
Prunings	Textiles
Small branches	Animal waste
	Biodegrable or compostable bags
	Children's toys
	Garden ornaments

Please do not dispose of food waste such as fruit and vegetable peelings in your garden waste bin as we are unable to compost this along with other plant matter. You can use fruit and vegetables in your own compost bin, if this is not used commercially/agriculturally.

Garden waste collections

On the day, please remember:

your garden collection day may not be the same as your regular bin collection day - check your garden waste collection dates here
put your bin out before 7am
place your bin at the side of the kerb, outside of your property
take your bin back once it has been emptied

Putting the wrong materials in your garden bin will mean we may not empty it, and no refund or partial refund will be made.

Missed garden waste collections

If your garden waste collection was missed, you can report it to us online.

Before reporting a missed collection, please:

make sure your garden waste bin was out by 7am on your collection day - check your garden waste collection dates here
make sure you did not have any wrong materials in your bin, as this may lead to your bin not being emptied
check our alerts page here - it may be that collections in your area did not take place on their designated day. If so, this will be reported on our alerts page and a new collection date will be put in place

Click here to report a missed residential bin collection (household waste, recycling, or garden waste)

The above form will allow you to select which type of bin collection was missed. Enter your details on the first page and then select 'Garden waste' from the drop-down box on the next page.

Other ways to dispose of your garden waste

You can also take your garden waste to our Household Waste Recovery Centre (the tip). Click here to find out more about our HWRCs.
You could also try composting. Click here for more information on home composting.

You can buy bags of compost from Northumberland County Council at your local Household Waste Recovery Centre.

Compost/soil conditioners can be bought from our HWRCs for about £3.70 per bag (2020 price). If there are none available at the time of your visit, bags can be ordered with expected delivery to the site between two to three days.

The compost is made from garden waste collected through our garden waste collection scheme.

Residents can buy compost in bulk from James Enderby (01434 602786 or 07717 416643). James will offer you a quote on the basis of time and distance. You can also visit the DJ and SJ recycling website by clicking here.

Residents choosing to pay for the service online, using a debit or credit card, will be automatically entered into a prize draw for a chance to win a refund of their yearly subscription. One customer will win per month between February and November.

Here we answer your frequently asked questions about garden waste.

Garden waste questions

Click on the questions below to reveal the answers:

How do I renew this service?

Please note: Garden waste subscriptions are now closed for 2021.

Returning customers will recieve a yearly invitation via email or letter in January, reminding you to renew your garden waste subscribtion for the current season.

An online form will be available when subscriptions to the next garden waste season open.

I'm a new customer, how do I join?

Please click here to check if you are eligible to apply for your collection.

We ask for applications for garden waste collections to be submitted during February. If we confirm we are able to collect from your area, you will be given a unique reference number that is needed to pay for the service.

Which payment options are available?

You can pay:

online using a credit or debit card (you will need your unique reference number)
by phone on 0345 600 6400 using a credit or debit card

Please note: Our Customer Service Centres are currently closed due to Covid-19 restrictions, which means customers cannot pay for the garden waste service in person at this time.

After you pay, you will be issued with a garden bin, and a garden waste bin sticker (for the current season) will be posted to you. This must be fixed on top of your bin, so we can easily identify your bin as eligible to be emptied throughout the paid-for season.

Please note: If you want to cancel the service, you must notify us in writing or by email within 14 days of payment in order for us to consider any refund.

What happens if my garden waste bin is missed?

If we have missed your garden bin, every effort will be made to return to collect it, providing it was missed through a fault of our own. However, if it has been missed due to bad weather or other circumstances beyond our control eg. the effect on service delivery due to the coronavirus, then this may not always be possible.

Unfortunately, we cannot pay refunds or part refunds for missed garden waste bins.

Why isn't my bin collected in winter months?

There are no collections from December to February because of the limited amount of garden waste produced. It is considered bad for the environment and expensive on fuel to send vehicles out during these months.

What happens if I move house or leave Northumberland?

If you move house within Northumberland then we may be able to arrange that your garden waste contract is moved to the next property but it is best to speak with the admin staff at your depot first. Please click here for our contact information, and ask for a call back from your local depot.

Please note: We are unable to provide a service both at your old house in addition to your new house unless extra payment is made.

If you leave the Northumberland area, then we cannot permit you to take your council-owned garden bin with you. We suggest therefore that you either agree to share the year’s cost with the new resident, that you leave it for the new owners to use if they so wish at your expense, or that you let us know and cancel the service.