Improving recycling in Lewes district

Lewes District Council is looking at moving to fortnightly refuse (black sack waste) collections from November 2025, to increase household recycling in the district.

Recycling collections would stay fortnightly and food waste collections would stay weekly. This system is called ‘Alternate Weekly Collections’ and would apply to most properties in the district.

Central government has set all councils a target recycling rate – the amount of household waste recycled – of 55%. This will increase to 65% by 2035.

Lewes district residents are great at recycling and what we send for processing is generally low in contamination, quality material, meaning it is clean, dry and consists of the right items.

The recycling rate in Lewes district is currently around 41% and has been for several years.

However, because of the high targets set by government, the council needs to increase the recycling rate in the district. With food waste collections becoming mandatory across the country from 2026, there will likely be an increased national focus on performance in this area, and this is where Lewes district does not perform so well.

What’s in an average Lewes district refuse bin?

*   On average, about 38% of refuse collected in Lewes district is food, waste which could have been recycled or composted.
*   A further 37% is comprised of other recyclable items.
*   Just under a quarter of all homes currently use the council’s free weekly food waste collections.
*   Only about 25% of the average refuse bin is non-recyclable waste.

Alternate Weekly Collections are a proven way to encourage households to recycle more of their waste. Studies by WRAP (Waste & Resources Action Programme) show that moving to alternate weekly collections typically increases household recycling rates by 5-10%. This can be even more for councils that offer food waste collections.

Most councils in England have already moved to alternate weekly collections, including all other district and borough councils in East Sussex.

The proposed change would mean an increase in the amount of waste recycled in the district and would reduce the amount of waste sent for incineration. It would also mean fewer collection vehicles on the roads.

Under the proposals, most properties would have their recycling and refuse collections the same day of the week (alternating each week). This would simplify collection calendars, making it easier for residents to know when to put their bins out.

Feedback survey

Lewes District Council is inviting feedback on the proposals via the survey, which is available at: lewes-eastbourne.gov.uk/AWC

This survey will stay open until 5pm on Monday 8 September 2025.

The council is interested to know what positive and negative impacts changing to Alternate Weekly Collections could have on your household. They would also like to know what would help you with a change to fortnightly refuse collections.

This could include food waste collections, a larger recycling or refuse bin, an extra recycling bin, assisted collections (help putting your bin out), or clinical waste collections (for adult incontinence waste products).

To find out more, visit lewes-eastbourne.gov.uk/AWC

Paper copies of the survey and other information are available from Lewes District Council offices.