local recycling guide

WHAT, HOW & WHERE to recycle locally ?!?

We have put together a guide.
This guide is work in progress, so if you know of something or someone that should be on this list, get in touch!

the recycling bin

​What do I put in the recycling bin?!? There seems to be a lot of confusion about what to actually put in the recycling bin, or if you are suppose to wash it or not?!!
Check out Bournemouth Recycling's website to get the answers. Their A-Z on recycling can also be useful.

Larger items and ones that don't go in the recycling bin, can be recycled at the local recycling centre. For more information about what you can recycle and where to go, visit their website. Bournemouth Council's recycling page

Electrical items

​Check out Bournemouth Council's recycling page to find information about recycling of electrical items and your nearest recycling point. 

FOOD WASTE

​7.2 Million tons of food goes to landfill every year in the UK! Let's do something about that: If you haven't got got a home compost system or a council compost bin, request a food waste bin from your local council for them to collect and compost your food waste. More information on that Household Bin Collections Bournemouth

surplus food

​Boscombe Community Fridge has now become Feed our Community a great project that encourages local people and businesses to donate surplus food. They have a fridge at Boscombe Library (currently closed), where you can donate and take food from.  For more information, or to get involved, check out Feed our Community

Another alternative is the app OLIO which connects neighbours with each other and with local businesses so surplus food can be shared.
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PLASTIC CARRIER BAGS

YES, you can recycle your carrier bags, stretchy plastic, bubble wrap, salad bags, cereal liners, bread bags, dry cleaning bags, shrink wrap bags, plastic fruit and vegetables nets and more! Most larger supermarkets will have a carrier bag recycling point. The closest ones locally are Sainsbury's Boscombe and Tesco on Castle lane. For a complete list of what and how you can recycle visit Recycle Now's website

CLOTHES

The obvious thing is to drop your unwanted items off to a charity shop​, or sell them via E-bay, facebook groups or other online selling platforms.

​Another alternative is to take them to a clothes swap event. One of them are the guys at Switch it Clothing who arranges regular clothes swapping events locally. More information about them here. Also there is nothing stopping you from arranging one yourself. We'd be happy to help you promote it!!

If you have clothes that are too worn for the charity shop, don't put them in the bin! You can recycle well worn clothes and scrap fabric at the local council recycling point. Some charity shops also have fabric recycling. Locally there are recycling banks for old clothes in Woodside Road car park and outside the One Stop on Seaborne Road.

Bras

Normally charity shops wont accept something classified as underwear, but there are some that allow you to donate your bras, swimsuits and lingerie.  Some Oxfam charity shops will also accept them, or you can post them to charities such as Against Breast Cancer
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Smalls for All give bras to women in Africa who are at risk of being raped. The possibility of a woman being raped is significantly less if she is wearing a bra, as it is seen as a sign of status/wealth.  Smalls for All, 108 Buchanan Crescent, Eliburn, Livingstone, EH54 7EF

Felt tip pens, crisps packets, tassimo discs, toothbrushes, ink cartridges ....& more!

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The charity Ideas to Action no longer collects these items.  However there are now lots of local groups collecting a number of items that aren't easily recyclable, who send them to Terra-cycle for recycling.

Take a look at our Collection points for Terracycle guide under the Directory drop down above.

​Ideas2Action do have a  We want that project, where they have made a list of items that different local charities need, for you to donate.

well worn shoes

​If you got shoes that are too loved for the charity shop, you can recycle them! Either at the local council recycling centre, or a local shoe recycling bin. We have used one that is outside of Grove Services in Southbourne and One Stop in Seabourne Road, there are probably others around too.

bottles tops

​Lush allows you to recycle bottle tops. Simply return your bottle tops to your local Lush shop, alternatively you can send them back via freepost. Simply address the envelope to "Freepost LUSH GREENHUB", maximum weight for freepost service is 2 KG.

Plastic Flower pots/ planters

Plastic flower pots can be recycled at most Garden centres. Locally we know Stewarts and Mc Penny's in Bransgore recycle them. But before you do that you might want to check if someone else might want them. Try the Facebook group SOBO RECYCLE

Baby Food Pouches

TerraCycle & Ella's Kitchen have partnered to create a free recycling programme for any brand of baby food pouches and Ella’s Kitchen’s snack wrappers. Locally you can recycle them via Hadland Group Head Office in 3 Wollaston Road Southbourne. You can also recycle them via local collection points see Terracycle list above.  Or you can go on Terracycle website to EllaCycle, type in your post code and find the nearest drop-off point to you with address and drop off times. 

toiletries

New, spare or unwanted toiletries is welcome by local shelters.They make care kits for homeless people. Locally Streets Together Bournemouth is collecting via Michael's House and The Mad Cucumber Vegan Lounge in Bournemouth. They prefer unopened items, but also accept opened to keep in shelter bathrooms. This can be anything from hair brushes, shampoo to make-up.

Give and MakeUp accept lightly used make up and toiletries and give them to women who have escaped abuse with next to nothing. Give & Makeup – PO Box 855, London, W4 4AW

NON-RECYCLABLE ITEMS

​TerraCycle is a recycling company that is recycling typically hard-to-recycle waste. TerraCycle’s Zero Waste Box platform allows you to recycle almost any type of waste, from your coffee capsules and cigarette butts, to complex laboratory waste. To use their services and find nearest drop-off point for different items, visit their website.ebsite

contact lenses

​There are a few collection points for contact lenses locally Boots Opticians Bournemouth & Christchurch  & Specsavers allow you can bring your old contact lenses, caps and cases to be recycle.
Also see our Terracycle list for individuals who collect these.

old prescription glasses 

Did you know that someone else might be interested in your old prescription glasses? Specsavers collects them for a charity that sends them off to Africa. The nearest to us would be Specsavers in Boscombe. Tesco Castle Lane also collects them.
Dorset Childrens Society also collect in non lockdown times.

Medication

Unopened, unused and out-of-date medicines can be returned to pharmacies for disposal. Once medicines have left the pharmacy, they cannot be recycled or re-used by anyone else. Inhalers are recyclable though at participating pharmacies. Empty blisters pack for tablets are not recyclable usually but Terracycle now have a scheme collection points now local Superdrug in Boscombe or Winton as well as  Ashley Pharmacy, 10 The Parade, Ashley locally. Read more about it via Recycle Now's website here

BRITA WATER FILTERS

​If you are using BRITA water filters you can recycle these locally. Brita has recycling scheme where they allow you to recycle your filters at some of its stockists.  
Sainsburys have one in Boscombe. Plus Robert Dyas shops, one in Christchurch. Go to their recycling site to the find your nearest recycling point.

Mascara wands

There are animal charities that will be happy to receive your used mascara wands as they up-cycle them to clean away oil, larvae, fly eggs, mites, infections, mud and other contaminants from wildlife. Wash them with dawn soap and mail them to a Wildlife Refuge accepting donations. Alternatively, if you buy your mascara and make up from a LUSH store, you will be able to recycle it in one of their stores and get a discount on your next shop.

Wrapping paper

​Can I put wrapping paper in the recycling bin? The answer is not always! If it contains foil, glitter or any other sort of plastic material its not recyclable. How do you check? Try to scrunch up the paper into a ball. If it scrunches, and stays scrunched, it can probably be recycled in normal your recycling bin.

recycle now

If you have an item that you couldn't find on our list, and is wondering what to do with it, the national recycling site RECYCLE NOW has an A- Z guide with a good overview and information on what to do with different items.

                       stuff to sell 

Have you got some clothes or items that are too good to give to charity, why don't you try to sell them? There are lots of online selling platforms. Ebay is the largest, Gumtree and local Facebook selling groups are good for selling most things. 

                         Stuff to give away

One man's trash is another man's treasure! Everything from well weathered furniture to bubble wrap that you no longer need, might come in useful for someone else. Try your local Freecycle and Gumtree. Or local Facebook groups such as Sobo Zero Waste group for more unlikely items such as packaging, surplus jam jars... 

Eco-bricks

Eco- brick is basically a brick made from stuffing loads of unrecyclable plastic into a single use plastic bottle. The bricks will later be made to build things, what is depending on the projects that are run locally. Ultimately it prevents these plastic items to go to landfill.

In our opinion to reduce the consumption of single use plastic and not buy the items in the first place, is the best way to sort the plastic problem. Eco bricking should be the very last resort, before landfill. So make sure you don’t putting anything in your brick that can in fact be recycled.

New Forest Aquaponics and ecobricks UK. A community interest company growing food and families. Find them on Facebook here.

CHRISTMAS TREE

​YES you can recycle your Christmas tree! For £5 this The charity Diverse Abilities will come and collect your tree for it to be recycled, chipped and reused. More information and bookings here: Tree-Cycling. You can also recycle your tree at the council's local recycling centre.  Or you can let it mulch down in the garden and provide cover for unseen insects.