Your council is making it easier for you to recycle your plastic bags and wrapping so that we can all recycle better, together. For information on what this means and how to identify and recycle these new items, read below.
Councils that have launched this service
What is this new service?
A new recycling service for plastic bags and wrapping is being introduced by your council. This means your plastic bags and wrapping will be collected fortnightly within your normal fully commingled recycling service.
Recycled plastic bags and wrapping can be used to make new plastic products such as plastic packaging, ‘bags for life’, boxes, bins, and agricultural and construction materials.
Recycling your plastic bags and wrapping is simple! Find out what to do below.
How to recycle your plastic bags and wrapping at home
1) Your plastic bags and wrapping should be empty and free from food residue and other contaminations.
2) Place your plastic bags and wrapping into your recycling bin, loose, with your other recyclables.
3) Place your recycling bin at the kerbside on your collection day.
DO NOT PUT ITEMS WITHIN ONE ANOTHER OR FILL BAGS WITH RECYCLING
Remember, plastic bags and wrapping is in addition to your regular recycling service. For more information on what else you can recycle in your recycling bin, visit your council website.
What to include
What can I recycle?
All items should be clean and free of food.
 | All plastic bags
carrier bags
salad/fruit/vegetable bags
frozen food bags
bread bags
cereal bags
flower bags |
 | Confectionary wrappers
chocolate
sweets
biscuits
cakes
ice cream and chewing gum wrappers |
 | Foil lined packaging
crisp/snack packets
coffee bags |
|
 | Cheese, fish, and meat wrapping |
 | Outer layer bags and wrapping
multipacks
toilet and kitchen roll
magazine and newspaper wrapping |
 | Plastic film and sleeves
removeable film lids
plastic sleeves for bottles and jars |
 | Bubble wrap and cling film
maximum 1m sections |
 | Fruit and vegetable net bags |
|
Keep it loose
Do not place any recycling within bags, and make sure all material is separated and loose, this makes it easier to be sorted ready to be recycled into something new!
Remember: All items should be clean, dry, empty, and intact.
What not to include
DO NOT recycle:
- Pouches, sachets and packets - microwaveable food, baby/pet food, cosmetics, detergent and cleaning
- Balloons
- Blister packs, pills, and tablets packaging
- Compostable or biodegradable bags and wrapping
- Crisp tubes
- Disposable gloves or masks
- Foam or polystyrene of any kind
- Plastic straws or cutlery
- Textiles and clothing - put these in a bag at the side of your bin
FAQs
What are plastic bags and wrapping?
‘Plastic bags and wrapping’ refers to the flexible plastic packaging that typically bends easily and can include bags, removable lids/liners (yoghurt pot lids) and wrappings. Plastic bags and wrapping are most commonly used to protect products such as sweets/chocolates, snack foods, frozen foods, bakery, fresh produce, meat, dairy, processed foods, cosmetics, personal care, householder detergents, and beverage bottle/can wrappings.
Why have you introduced a plastic bags and wrapping recycling collection service?
Your council has partnered with seven other Local Authorities to invest in Sherbourne Resource Park, a state-of-the-art recycling facility. Sherbourne uses advanced technologies like Artificial Intelligence and robot arms to process recycling, the integrated system means it can recover more materials and increase recycling performance.
With high recovery rates (up to 99%) Sherbourne is able to ensure all recycling stays in the U.K. Currently in the UK, only 7% of plastic bags and wrapping are recycled and the Sherbourne Resource Park facility is the first in the country to accept plastic bags and wrapping as part of commingled kerbside collections well ahead of new Government targets.
Can I still take my plastic bags and wrapping to front of store points to recycle?
Now that plastic bags and wrapping collections are available, please recycle your plastic bags and wrapping in your recycling bin from your next collection.
Can I put all types of plastic bags and wrapping into my recycling bin?
All types of plastic bags and wrapping listed above in the ‘What to include’ section are suitable to be recycled.
What is the environmental benefit of recycling plastic bags and wrapping?
Sherbourne is working on behalf of partner councils to recycle in a more efficient and sustainable way. Recycling plastic bags and wrapping lessens the reliance on use of virgin plastics (plastic that has never been recycled). Currently in the U.K, only 7% of plastic bags and wrapping are recycled, and offering this additional service helps increase that figure.
What can recycled plastic bags and wrapping be turned into?
Recycled plastic bags and wrapping can be used to make a range of new plastic products such as, plastic packaging, ‘bags for life’, boxes, bins, and agricultural and construction materials, reducing the reliance on virgin plastic. For longer term, the aim is to support turning recycled plastic bags and wrapping into plastic packaging for food, enabling the UK to create a fully circular model for using this type of plastic material.
What happens to my plastic bags and wrapping?
You can now include plastic bags and wrappings in your kerbside recycling bin, which will be taken to the Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) operated by Sherbourne Recycling in Coventry.
At Sherbourne, plastic bags and wrappings are extracted at multiple points during the sorting process using high velocity suction. Once separated this material is baled and sent to a U.K. based partner in the Midlands who mixes the material with other plastic polymers to create black plastic bag products.