Here’s the current Sevenoaks guidance on what goes in each bin, based on published council information.
| Bin / container | What you can put in it | What not to put in it |
|---|---|---|
| Black wheelie bin / general waste | Remaining waste only | Food waste, garden waste and recyclable items |
| Recycling bin with green lid | Glass bottles and jars; paper and cardboard; metal cans and tins; clean foil and aluminium trays; plastic bottles, pots, tubs and trays; empty toothpaste tubes; cartons such as Tetra Pak® | General waste, food waste, garden waste |
| Garden waste bin / sack | Lawn cuttings; flowers; leaves; hedge trimmings; weeds; twigs; small shrubs; branches under one metre long and 2" (50mm) in diameter | Soil; turf; stones; rubble; food waste; plastic; paper; fencing; wood; pet litter or animal waste; branches over one metre long and 2" (50mm) in diameter; compostable magazine wrappers |
| Food waste caddy | Food waste | The council’s rules don’t list the contents here, but they say food waste is collected from 27 April 2026 in a black caddy with an orange lid |
| Reusable recycling bags / clear sacks | Newspapers, magazines, other paper and shredded paper; cardboard boxes and packaging; cans; Tetra Pak® and other food, drink and long-life cartons; aluminium trays and clean kitchen foil; plastic bottles and tops; plastic yoghurt pots, margarine and ice cream tubs, fruit baskets and trays; empty plastic toothpaste tubes | Black plastic pots, tubs, trays or lids, film lids, and general waste |
A couple of extra points: Sevenoaks says garden waste must be compostable and shreddable, and households using communal facilities should put recycling directly into the communal recycling bins rather than using bags or sacks. If you want, I can also turn this into a simple “bin by bin” cheat sheet.