Waste and Recycling

Frequently asked questions

Click on a question to find out more


Who does what?

  • District and borough councils are responsible for collecting the rubbish from your homes.

  • Hampshire County Council is responsible for providing Household Waste Recycling Centres, and properly disposing of all the rubbish collected there and by the district and borough councils from the kerbside.

  • Portsmouth and Southampton are unitary authorities who are responsible for both collection and disposal of all rubbish in their respective cities.

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How can I dispose of bulky furniture items?

Bulky household waste such as fridges, sofas or televisions can be taken your local HWRC by the home owner (Hampshire resident) and disposed of free of charge. If you cannot do this, contact your local district council and they may be able to collect it for you, however there is likely to be a charge for this. Alternatively, you might like to offer it to a local community organisation for reuse.

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I work for a business. How can we start recycling?

Some district councils offer recycling collections for businesses, contact them directly to see what services they offer. Alternatively you can search for a disposal organisation using our database of alternative disposal routes or use the national Waste Directory search facility.

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Where can I buy Pro-Grow soil conditioner?

Green waste from HWRCs and kerbside collections is composted into Pro-Grow, a high quality soil conditioner. Pro-Grow is available in bags from all HWRCs and some retail outlets and garden centres in Hampshire. If you would like a bulk order, please call 0845 678 99 55.

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My bin hasn’t been collected. Why not?

Collections of waste and recycling are provided by your local district council, so you need to contact them directly if you have a query.

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My green bag went missing after collection. How do I get a new one?

Collections of green garden waste are provided by your local district council, so you need to contact them directly for any queries about this service.

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What should I do if I have a complaint?

If you have a complaint about an HWRC, please contact Hampshire County Council Waste Management. If your complaint is about your bin collection, then you should contact your local district council.

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Why did I have to fill in a disclaimer form when I visited the HWRC?

This is to verify that the waste is from your own home. HWRCs are for household waste delivered by the house owner only, they are not licensed to accept waste from a commercial or trade source. Due to the nature of the waste and/or the vehicle being used, site staff may have reason to believe that the waste may have come from a trade source or activity (e.g. you may have been driving a branded vehicle).

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Where does the money from the HWRC sales areas go?

Site staff are encouraged to recycle or reuse as much waste as possible to prevent it going to landfill, including through the onsite sales areas. As part of their site management contract, the site contractors receive any money from selling items on the site as an incentive for reusing and recycling as much as possible. This helps to reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill in the county and so helps us to keep disposal costs at a minimum.

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What should I do if I have a query about litter and/or fly-tipping?

Contact your local district council.

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How should I dispose of clinical waste?

Contact your local district council who should be able to advise you.

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How do I apply for a waste carrier's licence?

Anyone carrying waste for profit must be authorised to carry the waste and hold a valid waste carrier's licence. To find out more, or to apply for a licence, call the Environment Agency on 08708 506 506 or visit: www.environment-agency.gov.uk.

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