The service information presented for the London Borough of Lambeth was last updated in July 2008. Information was verified by borough contacts. The authors of this website are not responsible for any errors or omissions. Data relating to targets and performance is taken from Defra's Environment statistics.

Dry Recyclables

83,321 households are served by a weekly kerbside collection service. Materials are collected co-mingled in orange bags and / or a green box. Orange sacks are delivered to residents every four months and can also be collected from libraries. The following materials are collected using a compaction vehicle:

• aerosols (empty)
• cardboard
• drinks cartons
• food and drink cans
• glass bottles and jars
• paper 
• plastic bottles
• yellow pages

The materials colleted from householders are taken to a Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) where sacks are split open and the different materials are mechanically sorted. To download an information sheet with pictures about how the MRF works please click here.

Organics

A green garden waste collection service is available to residents on a request basis. Residents can use biodegradable sacks or a reusable bag to set out material for collection.

Dry Recycling

42,989 estate households are served by bring recycling systems located at 700 sites on 150 estates. Materials are taken by residents to co-mingled 1280 litre wheelie bins located near to the entrance of their block. The following materials are collected:

• aerosols (empty)
• cardboard
• drinks cartons
• food and drink cans
• glass bottles and jars
• paper (all types)
• plastic bottles
• yellow pages

1,966 estate households are served by one of two externally funded door-to-door collections schemes: the Aardvark and Clapham Park projects. Both collections are weekly and accept the same materials as the estates bring system (listed above). The Clapham Park project issues residents with orange sacks to set out materials for collection in.

Organics

The Aardvark project also collects food waste (including meat) from 6,000 estate households. Residents have been issued with kitchen caddies to set out material for collection on a weekly basis.

There is one Reuse and Recycling Centre in Lambeth:

Bring Banks

There are 42 public bring sites in Lambeth, collecting the following materials in 1280 litre co-mingled recycling bins or recycling pods:

• aerosols (empty)
• cardboard
• drinks cartons
• food and drink cans
• glass bottles and jars
• paper (all types)
• plastic bottles

Some sites also collect:

• books
• shoes
• textiles
• toner cartridges

Home Composting

Lambeth offers residents compost bins at a subsidised rate of £9.50 for a 220 litre bin, £12.00 for a 330 litre bin and £40 for a 250 litre thermo compost bin, all including free delivery.  Residents can also puchase a kitchen caddy for only £4 when they buy a bin.  Approximately 2000 bins have been distributed since the scheme started in 2000. To order a composter residents should call Recycle Now on 0845 077 0757 and quote the reference "leap" or visit www.recyclenow.com/compost.

Nappy Waste

Lambeth promotes the use of real nappies to its residents as an alternative to disposables.

Junk Mail Reduction

A Junk Mail campaign is running, across the Western Riverside Waste Authority area, by the Recycle Western Riverside campaign, promoting five simple steps that residents can follow to reduce the amount of junk mail they receive. For more information visit: www.westernriverside.org/junkmail.php.

Waste Exchange

Lambeth Freecycle is a website dedicated to allowing Lambeth residents to exchange unwanted items, preventing them from going to landfill.  For more information visit: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/freecyclelambeth/

Material Aware Shopping

The council promotes green shopping to residents and distributes cloth shopping bags to residents.

The Recycle Western Riverside Campaign also runs the "Taste the water" and "What not to waste" campaigns. The "Taste the water" campaign encourages residents to drink tap water instead of buying bottled and the "What not to waste" campaign is an  award winning eco-makeover, working with families to transform Western Riverside households from 'wasters' to winners in six weeks.

Bulky Waste

Residents can take their white goods to Vale Street Recycling Centre or can arrange for the Council to collect it.

Residents can have bulky waste collected free of charge, four times a year.

Lambeth is working in partnership with Shaftesbury which collects all reusable furniture. To arrange a collection call: 0207 926 9000

Schools Recycling

Schools have co-mingled recycling bins for the collection of:

• aerosols (empty)
• cardboard
• food and drink cans
• glass bottles and jars
• paper (all types)

Schools can take part in the Recycle Western Riverside campaign, which aims to raise awareness of waste and recycling issues at a local level.

Schools can also visit the education centre at Western Riverside Waste Authority’s Smuggler’s Way transfer station to find out what happens to their waste. Pupils will be shown an educational video "Wealth Hidden in Waste" and receive worksheets, which tie in with new pages on the educational waste website www.capitalwastelearning.com. The project was funded by the Western Riverside Environmental Fund (WREF).

Residual Waste

Residual household waste is collected weekly from the kerbside. Residents are provided with a 240 litre wheeled bin for collection.

Commercial Waste and Recycling

Lambeth is running a trial recycling collection from 30 businesses in Clapham Park. Recyclables are collected weekly using co-mingled 1100 litre recycling bins or orange sacks. There is a 20% discount from the normal commercial waste collection. The following materials are collected:

• aerosols (empty)
• cardboard
• drinks cartons
• food and drink cans
• glass bottles and jars
• paper (all types)
• plastic bottles
• yellow pages

Find out more about recycling in your area Visit Recycle for London
Compare Lambeth's recycling services with the rest of London	View the London Matrix
Find out more about the London Borough of Lambeth

Contact Lambeth Address: London Borough of Lambeth Recycling, 1st Floor Serviceteam House 185-205 Shakespeare Road Lambeth SE24 0PZ  Tel: 020 7926 9000   Email: recycling@lambeth.gov.uk Recycling Team: Michael Munnelly (Waste Development Manager) Olatz Garde-Mazkiaran (Waste Development Officer) Cecil Boston (Waste Support Officer)