Subscribe to our new garden waste service

You cut. We collect. Nature composts.

Imagine more time to enjoy your garden - not just work in it. With our new fortnightly garden waste collection service, starting in March 2026, you can spend less time transporting waste and more time relaxing in your outdoor space.

Our year-round service (excluding just two weeks at Christmas) will collect your garden waste directly from your property and deliver it for composting at a local facility.

Subscriptions will open on 22 October 2025, so sign up soon to ensure you're ready for collections to start on 30 March 2026.

If you sign up before 9am on 1 December 2025 you will be entered into a prize draw where 10 winners will be selected at random to win a subscription for a year. For further information see the prize draw terms and conditions.

Sign up to the garden waste collection service

Why subscribe?

It's better for you (and the planet):

• No more plastic sacks. Say goodbye to single-use green bags and hello to a cleaner, greener solution
• Effortless and affordable. Just £60 a year, that is just £2.40 per collection.
• We bring the bin. A spacious 240-litre brown bin delivered to your door - or 4 x 60 litre reusable sacks if your property is not suitable for a bin
• Compost made local. Your garden waste becomes Herefordshire soil improver
• No more trips to the recycling centre. Save time, fuel, and hassle
• Flexible for all gardens. Share a bin with neighbours or get extra bins if you need them
• Moving house? Take your subscription with you - no extra charge

What can go in?

Lawn cuttings, hedge clippings, leaves, twigs, small branches, dead flowers, weeds - all will be turned into compost that will help gardens thrive. See our full list of what can go in your bin.

More time for you.

Whether it's a quiet cuppa on the patio or a weekend barbecue with friends, let us handle your garden waste so you can enjoy the space you've created.

Ready to grow something great?

Sign up from 22 October to ensure that your service starts in March 2026.

Using the service

You can share a bin or reusable sacks with your neighbours.

The bin/reusable sacks will only be collected from the address provided when you subscribed.

Only bins or reusable sacks provided by Herefordshire Council will be collected.

The person named on the subscription is responsible if the bin is contaminated, misused or needs replacing.

If you move to another address within Herefordshire, and you want to continue to use this service you will need to tell us that you have moved. You can take your brown bin or reusable sacks with you.

Your garden waste will be composted locally and turned into a soil improver. You will be able to buy this from your local household recycling centre.

Collections

We will contact you, using the email or postal address given when you signed up, in February 2026 to tell you your collection day and schedule. We will also provide a collection schedule, via this website, before March 2026.

Your bin should be left out for collection with the lid fully closed. Reusable sacks should be put out for collection with the lid Velcroed closed.

Your bin will be collected from the same location as your rubbish and recycling bins - this will normally be the boundary of your property closest to the public highway.

We can only collect garden waste contained within your bin or reusable sack.

If you find that you have more garden waste than will fit in your bin or reusable sack, you can add more bins or sacks to your subscription. Each property can have up to five subscriptions.

If you have an assisted collection we will collect your garden waste bin from the same location as your other bins. Find out more about assisted collections.

What can I put in my bin?

Yes please

• Grass cuttings
• Hedge and shrub clippings
• Leaves
• Twigs and bark
• Small plants and weeds
• Cut flowers
• Windfall fruit

All will be turned into compost that will help gardens thrive.

Please don't over fill your garden bin with windfall fruit. If your bin is overweight, it may not be collected.

No thank you

• Kitchen waste (vegetable peelings, tea bags and eggshells)
• Animal waste or bedding
• Plastic bags, pots or trays
• Brick, rubble, soil and stones
• Tree stumps or large branches (over 10cm or 4" in diameter)

If any of these items are placed in your bin, it cannot be collected.

Charges

The charge for the service is £60 per bin for the first year. This covers the period between 30 March 2026 and 31 March 2027.

Each property can have up to five bins - for all additional bins added to a subscription a £10 delivery fee will be charged.

Payment for the first year can be made by debit or credit card. During sign up you will need to set up a direct debit payment for the following years. Payments will be taken annually in February each year.

The direct debit reference on your bank statement will show as Hereford Debtors or Hereford UA.

Charges are set annually on 1 April and customers will be notified of the annual price change at least 14 days before payment in February. We will renew your service automatically, unless you choose to cancel.

Refunds will only be possible during the 14-day cooling off period from the date of subscription. Should you wish to cancel during this period you will need to tell us, and a full refund will be provided. Refunds will not be provided for any other reason.

Your bins

Brown bins or sacks will be delivered to you during February and March 2026. If you subscribe to the service before 15 February 2026 your bins will be delivered at least two weeks before the service starts on Monday 30 March 2026.

The bin remains the property of Herefordshire Council. It is your responsibility to keep the bin safe and secure.

If your bin is lost, stolen or damaged, please report this to us as soon as possible and we will investigate. The subscription holder will be responsible for the cost of replacements due to loss or damage other than that caused by the emptying process.

Compost

Your garden waste becomes Herefordshire soil improver – it is taken to a local facility where it is composted for you. It is then available to buy for just £3 a bag from your local household recycling centre.

Terms and conditions

View the service terms and conditions

Green garden waste sacks

From 28 March 2026, this service will be replaced by bins or reusable sacks, you will not be able to buy green sacks after 1 March 2026.

The last collection of these sacks will be made on 27 March 2026. No refunds will be provided for unused sacks.

The introduction of the new garden waste service ensures that the council is compliant with government legislation as set out in the Environment Act 2021 which states that garden waste must be collected separately for composting.

Other ways to dispose of garden waste

• Composting at home is a great way to manage your garden waste. By composting you can use your own garden waste to feed your garden organically. There are a wide range of composting options to suit all gardens
• Household recycling centres provide facilities for composting garden waste

Cancelling existing garden waste collection service

If you already use a garden waste collection service and you would like to move to our service, it is your responsibility to contact your provider and cancel your subscription, subject to their terms and conditions.