The law is changing in England which will require you or your workplace to recycle a core set of recyclable materials. These changes will take place at different times, depending on the number of full time equivalent (FTE) employees:
- By 31 March 2025 – if you have 10 or more full-time equivalent (FTE) employees.
- By 31 March 2027 – if you have fewer than 10 FTE employees in total across all of your premises.
The following materials will need to be recycled:
- Food waste
- Paper and card
- Plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays, and cartons
- Metal tins and cans, foil and empty aerosols
- Glass bottles and jars
- Plastic films (from 2027)
All workplaces need to act, including:
- Businesses
- Care homes
- Educational establishments
- Healthcare establishments
- Places of worship
- Penal institutes
- Charity shops
- Residential hostels
- Premises used for public meetings
This is a legal requirement and ignoring the changes could result in compliance action being taken against your business.
Businesses should peak to their waste collector to check if current services meet the requirements or if changes are needed, tell your staff about any new processes and how to recycle correctly. This might include signage on bins. Decide how frequently your recycling and food waste collections should be based on the amount of waste you produce.
For more detail on the actions you need to take, you should check the guidance or visit Recycling of Business for useful toolkits and support with waste management.