Charnwood Borough Council will begin delivering food waste caddy packs to most households from Monday, 28 September 2026. The staggered delivery programme will run over four weeks until Friday, 23 October 2026.
The council is working with recycling and refuse partner Serco to roll out a weekly food waste recycling service for more than 70,000 homes from the week commencing 2 November 2026. Over 20,000 caddy packs are due to be delivered in the first week alone.
What residents will receive
Each household will receive two caddies — one for use inside the home and one to place outside for collection. The pack will also include a supply of liners for the indoor caddy and information about the new service. A reflective sticker is included, which can be applied to the outdoor caddy to make it more visible for collection crews during darker mornings and evenings.
The caddy pack may be delivered on a different day to a household's usual bin collection day. Residents are urged to take the pack inside and only start recycling food waste the week before their first collection.
Collection arrangements
Food waste bins will be collected on the same day as green or black bins when the service starts from 2 November 2026. There are no changes to existing bin collection days.
Properties with communal bin store areas such as flats and sheltered accommodation will not start collections until 2027. These properties will receive caddy packs closer to their start date next year.
Why the change is happening
The introduction of weekly food waste collections is required under the Government's Simpler Recycling rules, which require all councils in England to collect food waste separately. The changes aim to reduce the amount of waste in black bins and carbon emissions.
Collected food waste will be taken to an anaerobic digestion facility where it is used to generate biogas, a renewable energy source cleaner and cheaper than fossil fuels. The process also produces nutrient-rich fertiliser for farms.
More information
Residents can find out when they can expect to receive their caddy pack on the council's website at www.charnwood.gov.uk/CaddyDelivery. Further information about food waste collections and frequently asked questions is available at www.charnwood.gov.uk/foodwaste.
Cllr Anne Gray, Lead Member for Waste, Open Spaces and Leisure Facilities, said: "The caddy pack includes everything you need to know and how to use the service. Please keep an eye out for your caddies once they are delivered and take them inside. I appreciate this is a big change, but I would encourage you to give food waste recycling a try once the service gets underway."