Small electricals and batteries to be recycled from the kerbside

Small electrical items and batteries will be collected from the kerbside as part of normal waste and recycling collections from Monday 30 September.

The new scheme, part of the Royal Borough’s contract with Serco, will mean that residents will be able to recycle unwanted small electrical items alongside their other recycling, food waste and textiles. The Royal Borough is the first council in Berkshire to offer this service from the kerbside.

All sorts of small electrical items including toasters, kettles, keyboards, hairdryers, electric shavers will be collected along with their leads and cables, as long as they fit inside a standard size carrier bag.

Residents should place unwanted small electrical items in any plastic bag and then leave the bag next to their bins on collection day. Household batteries (not including car batteries) will also be collected in the same way but need to left in a different bag.

Cllr Gerry Clark, lead member for sustainability, waste services and economic development, said: “We are delighted to be introducing this new service for our residents as we look to make recycling as easy as possible.

“As part of the scheme, small electricals left out for collection will either be recycled or reused. We hope residents will take advantage of this new service and recycle as much as they can.

“The more we recycle, the better it is for our planet and the environment. Not only that but recycling is also significantly cheaper for us dispose of, meaning taxpayers money can be saved and put towards other vital services.”

All electrical items will be either reused or recycled and the various raw materials used to make new products such as the zinc in mobile phones used for galvanising railings and lamp posts and the gold found in games consoles used to make new jewellery.

Larger items, such as TVs and microwaves, will still need to be taken to the tip for recycling. A list of council recycling centres can be found here .