Bromley Bin Collection Days: What Goes Out When

The thing that catches most people out about a Bromley bin collection is that it is not one collection at all. Everything comes out on the same weekday, but what you put out changes from week to week: the black box and your rubbish sacks one week, the green box the next, and the food caddy every single week without fail. Get the pattern wrong and you are left with a full box on the pavement for a fortnight. Below is how to find your day, what belongs in each container, what garden waste costs and what happens over bank holidays, all checked against the London Borough of Bromley’s own pages.

How to find your bin collection day

The council runs a free address lookup. Enter your postcode and pick your address, and it returns your collection day and which week you are on.

• Use the council’s bin collection checker at recyclingservices.bromley.gov.uk. The same tool reports a missed collection, orders replacement containers and books a bulky collection.
• If you prefer paper, the council publishes waste collection calendars as printable PDFs. There is a separate Week 1 and Week 2 calendar, plus a collection days sheet that tells you which week your address is assigned to.

Whichever route you take, the presentation rule is the same. Containers must be out by 7am on your collection day, placed at the edge of your property’s boundary with the pavement or within arm’s reach of it, and not left standing on the pavement itself. If your containers are behind a locked gate or hidden by a parked car the crew may not be able to collect, and in that case a missed collection cannot be reported (presenting your recycling and waste).

What goes out each week in Bromley

Bromley uses boxes rather than wheelie bins for recycling, and supplies no container for ordinary rubbish at all. On your collection day the crews take your food waste, plus either the black box and your refuse, or the green box, depending on the week (recycling and waste collections).

Food waste: weekly, every week

Food waste is the one collection that never skips a week. It takes fruit and vegetable peelings, meat, fish and bones, cooked and uncooked food, plate scrapings, bread, pasta and rice, tea bags and coffee grounds, dairy and eggshells, and cut flowers if wrapped in newspaper or a compostable bag. It will not take plastic film or food wrapping of any kind, including bags sold as biodegradable, nappies, pet waste or general rubbish (food waste recycling collection).

Liners are worth knowing about. Bromley libraries sell certified compostable liners at £2.90 for a roll of 50, which the council points out is cheaper than the supermarket. Only compostable bags are allowed, not plastic or biodegradable ones.

Black box: paper and card

The black box is for newspapers and magazines, letters and bills, envelopes, catalogues, cardboard tubes, greeting cards without glitter, and shredded paper contained in a large envelope or cereal box so it does not blow away. Cardboard boxes go in too, but they must be flattened or cut to fit inside the box, or left beside it in a neat bundle of roughly two feet by three feet. Crews will not take a pile of unflattened boxes (black box paper recycling).

Two things do not belong here and catch people out regularly: hardback books, because the cover cannot be recycled, and drink cartons or Tetra Paks, which go in the green box instead.

Green box: bottles, cans, glass and plastics

The green box takes drink and aerosol cans, food tins and foil, glass bottles and jars of every colour including their lids, milk, drinks, detergent and shampoo bottles, plastic trays, yoghurt pots, ice cream and margarine tubs, Tetra Paks, toothpaste and puree tubes, and plastic plant pots (green box recycling).

The council’s rule of thumb for what to leave out is simple: if it scrunches, it cannot go in. That rules out plastic bags, film, crisp packets and sweet wrappers, along with black plastic containers, polystyrene, Pyrex, drinking glasses, crockery, broken glass and window glass. Soft plastics go to the collection points at most larger supermarkets instead.

Non-recyclable refuse: you supply the container

This is where Bromley differs from most councils. It provides boxes for recycling but no container for your rubbish, so the bin is your own. Refuse is collected every other week, in the same week as your black box, and it has to be bagged: black sacks or the equivalent, in quantities that fit easily into a standard dustbin. If you use your own wheelie bin the contents still need to be in sacks, and the bin must comply with safety standard EN840, because the crew may need to tip it on the lorry (non-recyclable refuse collection).

Batteries, small electricals, clothes and textiles

These are collected on any collection day, but not inside your boxes. Put them in loosely tied plastic bags, not black sacks, beside your green or black container. Household batteries, small electricals such as toasters, hair dryers, phones, laptops and chargers, and clothing, shoes, towels and bed linen all qualify. Car batteries, vacuum cleaners, microwaves, televisions, duvets and pillows do not (recycling guide leaflet).

Garden waste is a paid subscription

Garden waste is not part of the standard service. It is a separate annual subscription costing £80 for 12 months, which the council works out at about £1.54 a week, and which gets you a 240 litre green wheelie bin. New bins are delivered in roughly two weeks and you do not need to be at home (green garden waste collection).

The frequency changes with the season. Through the nine month gardening season from March to November the bin is emptied every other week; for the remaining three months it is emptied once a month. Grass cuttings, leaves, prunings, hedge trimmings and small branches go in loose, no bags needed. Rubble, soil, food waste, plastic flower pots, garden furniture and tree trunks are all refused. If your property has gravel paths or multiple steps the council may decline the subscription, because crews cannot drag a loaded bin over them.

If a subscription is not worth it, the council runs weekend garden waste sites across the borough and two reuse and recycling centres, at Churchfields Road in Beckenham and Waldo Road. Churchfields Road needs a slot booked in advance (recycling sites).

Bulky waste collections

For furniture, mattresses and anything too big for the normal collection, the council runs a chargeable service with a minimum charge of £43, booked online or by phone, priced on the number and type of items. Once you have paid, the contractor agrees a date within 10 working days, and items go at the front of your property, off the public highway, between 7am and 3.30pm (disposing of bulky items).

There is a concession worth claiming. If you receive Universal Credit or Housing Benefit you are entitled to one free collection up to the value of £43 in any 12 month period, with proof of eligibility. Anything above that, or a second collection inside the same year, is charged as normal.

Bank holidays: everything moves back a day

Around bank holidays Bromley does not cancel collections, it shifts them. For the summer bank holiday on Monday 31 August 2026, every collection that week moves back a day: Monday’s round happens on Tuesday 1 September, and so on through to Friday’s round landing on Saturday 5 September. Normal service resumes in the week commencing 7 September 2026 (bank holiday waste and recycling collections). The dates change each year and Christmas is the period to check rather than assume.

If your collection is missed

Your recycling and rubbish are collected on the same day but not necessarily at the same time, so leave containers out until the end of the day before reporting anything. Report a genuine miss within two working days. If your container was not at the edge of your property by 7am, you will be asked to wait for the next scheduled collection (recycling and waste collections). Collections are carried out by Veolia under contract to the council, and the missed collection form sits on the same system as the collection day checker.

Frequently asked questions

How do I find my bin collection day in Bromley?

Enter your postcode in the council’s collection day checker and select your address. It shows your collection day and which week your address is on. You can also download the Week 1 and Week 2 printable calendars.

What is the difference between the black box and the green box in Bromley?

The black box is for paper and card only. The green box takes bottles, cans, glass, foil, Tetra Paks and rigid plastics such as yoghurt pots and trays. Drink cartons go in the green box, not the black one. Each is collected every other week.

Is rubbish collected weekly in Bromley?

No. Non-recyclable refuse is collected every other week, in the same week as your black box, and the green box comes on the alternate week. Only food waste is collected every week. The council does not supply a refuse container, so you provide your own bin or sacks.

How much does garden waste collection cost in Bromley?

£80 for 12 months, which includes a 240 litre wheelie bin. Collections are every other week from March to November and monthly for the other three months, via the council’s green garden waste page.

How much is a bulky waste collection in Bromley?

There is a minimum charge of £43, with the final cost depending on the number and type of items. Households on Universal Credit or Housing Benefit get one free collection up to £43 in any 12 month period, on proof of eligibility.

Do bin collections change on bank holidays in Bromley?

Yes. Collections move back by one day for the rest of that week. For the summer bank holiday on Monday 31 August 2026, Monday’s collection happens on Tuesday 1 September and Friday’s on Saturday 5 September, with normal service resuming from 7 September.

Sources

All figures on this page come from the London Borough of Bromley: the collection day checker, collection calendars, presentation rules, food waste, black box, green box, refuse, recycling guide, garden waste, bulky items, recycling sites and bank holiday collections.

Charges are reviewed by the council, so confirm on its own pages before you pay. Our guides to Bromley council tax bands and parking in Bromley cover the other two bills households ask about most.