Festive Waste

Festive Refuse Collection

Due to the Christmas and New Year holidays some of your bin collection dates will change. Please note your revised collection dates in the table below:

We will lift all excess waste and empty all correct coloured bins presented on the new collection dates. 

Bulk waste/excess waste

During the busy festive period you can take bulk or excess waste to any of our recycling centres listed below. 

• Dawsholm Recycling Centre, 75 Dalsholm Road, Glasgow G20 0TB
• Easter Queenslie Recycling Centre, 90 Easter Queenslie Road, Glasgow G33 4UL
• Polmadie Recycling Centre, 425 Polmadie Road, Glasgow G42 0PJ
• Shieldhall Recycling Centre, Renfrew Road, Glasgow G51 4SA

Open 7 days a week, 8am to 6pm (last entry at 5.45pm).

Please note that the centres are closed on Christmas Day and New Year's Day.

Flatted properties

If you stay in a flat or tenement there may be a change to bin collections but please be assured your bins will still be collected, however it may be on a different day than usual.

Please remember, there are more than 800 public recycling sites, allowing residents to dispose of glass jars, bottles and food waste.

Where can I recycle real Christmas trees?

For households that have a brown bin permit for their brown bin, real Christmas trees can be placed in your bin for kerbside collection. Please note if your collection dates fall on Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year's Day and 2 January you will receive a communication leaflet when to present your bin for collection.

For residents who have a brown bin permit, please cut the tree into manageable pieces and ensure that the lid will close and the tree is not wedged into the bin.

Alternatively, trees can be taken to any of the council household waste recycling centres.

Real Christmas trees can also be taken to the following locations from 3 January until 31 January:

• Kelvingrove Park, Kelvin Way, grass area opposite the bandstand. Please note that this area is now pedestrianised and you will have to park a short distance away and walk over to the bandstand.
• Pollok Country Park, main car park, near the Burrell Collection.
• Mansfield Park, drop off point via Hyndland Street at Mansfield Park.

The trees collected in the brown bins or taken to the recycling centres are sent for composting to our re-processing partners and the trees taken to the parks are chipped and shredded on site for use within the parks.

Chippings will be available for the public to take free of charge from Pollok Park. Recycling helps to divert waste from landfill and assist residents achieve a greener Christmas.

Can I place Christmas cards and wrapping paper within the blue bin?

Plain Christmas cards can be placed in the blue recycling bins, although cards decorated with glitter cannot as this potentially causes problems at the paper mill. Please check high street retail outlets and supermarkets who may have collections points for cards.

Please remove any ribbons, bows, or other adornments from wrapping paper before placing in blue bin. Metallic shiny paper should not be placed within the blue bin. Shiny metallic wrapping paper is made from plastic film and this type of material is not currently recycled.

The scrunch test is a simple way to determine whether wrapping paper is made from plastic film. Simply scrunch it in your hand - if it remains 'scrunched' it can be recycled; if it springs back it is probably plastic film and not recyclable.

• Scrunch Test video

Please note, the council is in the process of changing recycling services to kerbside properties.  If you stay within a house and present your bin to the pavement for collection, the blue bin should be used for mixed papers, card and cardboard only.  Similarly, if you stay within a flat and are part of the bin hub collection service, the blue bin should only be used for mixed papers, card and cardboard.

If you stay within a house and have yet to receive the new twin stream service, in addition to mixed papers, card and cardboard, you can still place food and drinks cans and plastic bottles into the blue bin.  Similarly, if your flat is not part of the bin hub service, please continue to place these materials into your blue bin.

For further information, you can view the dedicated pages on twin stream recycling and the bin hubs for flats.

Christmas food waste recycling

Over the festive period it is likely that we will consume more food and drink than at other times of the year. By planning meals and making shopping lists there is less chance of food being wasted. The Love Food, Hate Waste (Scotland) website provides plenty of ideas and suggestions to reduce food waste and also provides lots of tasty leftover recipes.

For food waste that is generated, please use your grey kitchen caddy to dispose of food waste that you produce over the Christmas period. Your caddy can accept all cooked and uncooked food, even eggshells and bones. Short films on how to use the food waste collection service and what happens to your food waste after it is collected are available on the council website.

Glass recycling

More glass bottles and jars are generated over the festive period compared to any other time of the year. Please use your purple bin or nearest public collection point  for glass bottles and jars.

Batteries and Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE)

There is an increase in battery use within toys and domestic appliances over the festive period but please do not place waste batteries into any domestic bin.  Facilities for the collection of batteries and WEEE are available at the Council's household waste recycling centres and takeback facilities for batteries are also available at retailers, including most supermarkets, who sell over 32kg/year.