Here are some ideas and suggestions on how to reduce the amount of rubbish in your black bin, and recycle more.
In the Home Zone, bins are emptied every week ON THURSDAYS, but different bins on different weeks. Generally:-
Brown Food waste bin - emptied every week on Thursdays
Black bins - non recyclable rubbish - every two weeks (blue cardboard bin and black bin the same week)
Blue lidded bin - paper and cardboard - every two weeks (black bin and blue cardboard bin the same week)
Green bin - every two weeks on alternate Thursdays
For the schedule for which bins are emptied and when - see Kingston's schedule here
Or download a copy of this year's Thursday schedule here
- Separate rubbish and recycling inside your house - this will make it easier to separate it when you are taking the recycling and rubbish out to the outside bins
- Flatten Boxes - undo the tape with a knife or scissors, so that the box can be flattened, you can get much more into your blue lidded bin when boxes are flattened.
- Rinse out your plastic containers, glass and cans - this increases the ability for Kingston Council to easily recycle what has been put into the green bins
- Take soft plastics to the supermarket to recycle - soft plastics are not collected by Kingston Council, soft plastics such as plastic bags, bubble wrap, cling film or soft plastic food coverings need to be taken to the supermarket where a recycling service is available.
- Foil lined packaging (crisp packets, baby food pouches, rice and grain pouches with silver lining) can be recycled but Kingston Council don't take these - you can request a free envelope from Merchant Gourmet's recycling scheme here
- Coffee Pods Used coffee pods Nespresso etc can be recycled - check this link to find out where you can recycle for your particular coffee machine.
- Tin foil Clean tin foil can be added to your green bin - make a large ball of tin foil, add tin foil wrappings from chocolate etc and make as large a ball of tin foil as you can before adding it to your green bin
- Use Kingston's Waste Recycling Centre for FREE - but you need to book your visit (20 free of charge visits per year). Any large items, gardening waste, rubble, old furniture, ridgid plastics, metals etc can be taken to the Villiers Road Recycling Centre. You must book a visit FREE of charge before you visit. Book your visit here
- Take items to local charity shops - e.g. books, old clothes, crockery, cutlery, shoes, jewellery, bric-a-brack. There are at least 6 charity shops on New Malden high street and they will all take unwanted items. Even old clothing that you think can't be re-used, can be sold by the ton as rags and its chopped up, and used to stuff toys, cushions etc. Tell the shop that this is ready for the 'rag' bag.
- Clothing and textiles and small electricals can be collected by a charity. Read more about Triad who can collect clothing and textile recycling
- Gardening Waste - can be collected by Kingston Council every other Thursday (same day as black bins and blue lidded bin collection). This service is NOT free and an annual charge is applicable (Sept 2026 an annual charge of £104 which works out as £4 per waste collection) You can subscribe to garden waste here
- Bulky Waste Collection: It is possible to ask Kingston Council to collect large waste items - a charge applies depending on the number of items (Sept 2026: 1-4 items £48 / 5-8 items £73) Book this here
- More ways to recycle can be found on Kingston Council's website here