Some items you’ve always recycled at home will no longer be collected as councils begin following the new Simpler Recycling rules – leaving households uncertain about what can go in the bin.
Recycling rules for households in England are changing on 31 March 2026, with councils required to follow a standard list of materials for collection.
Whilst some items will no longer be collected, some core materials will continue to be recyclable, but confusion remains about what counts as "acceptable".
Article continues belowWhat goes in the recycling bin under the new rules
1. Paper & Card
- Newspapers and magazines
- Office paper
- Cardboard boxes (flattened), cereal boxes and packaging cartons
- Liquid cartons
2. Glass
- Bottles and jars used for food and drink packaging
3. Metal
- Food and drink cans
- Tins and foil trays
- Foil packaging
4. Plastics
- Plastic bottles, tubs and trays made from recyclable plastics (such as PET, PP and PE)
- Non-black plastic plant pots, which are now included after the horticulture sector worked to ensure they could be processed by recycling systems
Samantha Dyer, Head of Responsible Business at B&Q, said: “Customers want to garden more sustainably, and being able to recycle plant pots at home will make a real difference. Clear and consistent guidance from councils will help ensure more of these materials are captured and recycled rather than thrown away.”
Why some recycling may still be rejected
Confusion over what can be recycled remains a major issue, with a significant proportion of household recycling being rejected due to contamination.
Mark Hall, waste management expert at BusinessWaste.co.uk, said: “As much as 20% of the waste we have intended to recycle is rejected, usually due to the incorrect items being placed in bins or from contaminants like grease. This is a great shame as many people work hard at home to separate waste and do their bit to protect the environment. Often contamination is just down to a lack of education.”
Research from BusinessWaste.co.uk indicates that 82% of UK households put at least one non-accepted item in their recycling, and around 40% of all household recycling is contaminated. Common problem items include drinking glasses, foil pouches, toothpaste tubes and plastic film lids, which can cause entire batches to be rejected.
Hall advised households to take practical steps to reduce contamination, including not bagging recycling, separating mixed recycling building materials, rinsing food containers and avoiding “wishcycling” – placing items in bins in the hope they can be recycled.
He added: “As Simpler Recycling launches for homes on April 1st across England, more public awareness of how recycling works and what local authorities will accept should help to see contamination rates decline in future.”
What the changes mean for households
The new rules mean that while there is now a clearer national list of recyclable materials, households may need to adjust long-standing habits about what goes into their bins.
Items such as drinking glasses, cookware, bulky plastics and compostable plastics are no longer required to be collected as part of household recycling, even if some residents may have previously included them.
However, councils may still vary in how quickly they update guidance and collections, meaning households are likely to rely on local instructions alongside the national rules as the changes take effect.
