• Recycling
Council Recycling
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Council Recycling

As well as the regular kerbside collection recycling, West Sussex County Council also offer recycling of Hard Plastics, Coffee Pods, Textiles, Large Furniture Items, Garden Waste.

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Supermarket Recycling

Most supermarkets take soft plastics (more than just your carrier bags!) as well as batteries, water filter cartridges.

Charity Recycling
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Charity Recycling

We raise money for various charities by recycling hard to recycle flexible plastics, printer cartridges, milk bottle tops, textiles and mobiles.

Reduce Waste
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Reduce Waste

Switch from liquid products to dry concentrates, reducing weight by about 80%, packaging and CO2. Add the water at home and giving dry a try!

The What‘s and Where’s of Recycling

In 2021, 63.2% of UK packaging waste was recycled. Sounds good right? What about the other 37% which wasn’t or couldn’t be recycled?

In West Sussex, we recycle 53% kerbside recycling, above the national average of 44%. When you recycle, you stop manufacturers using new raw materials and which also uses less energy too.  However, many products can only be recycled a few times before they aren’t fit-for-purpose.

In these pages you can find out where and how to recycle at home, and at local council centres. You’ll also find out what to do with hard-to-recycle items and alternatives to recycling.

Why Recycle?

Recycling Conserves Resources

When we recycle, used materials are converted into new products, reducing the need to consume natural resources.

Recycling Saves Energy

Using recycled materials in the manufacturing process uses less energy than producing new products from raw materials. Some products save more energy than others e.g. recycling aluminium drink cans saves up to 95% of the energy needed to make aluminium from its raw materials.

Recycling Reduces Landfill and Incineration

In 2008-09 over 27 million tonnes of household waste was collected by local authorities. Of this:

  • 50% of this waste was sent to landfill;
  • 37% was recycled or composted; and
  • 12% was incinerated for energy recovery.

The amount of household waste we recycled in 2008 reached 8.7 million tonnes. That alone saved the same amount of CO2 that nearly a million return flights from London to Sydney would produce.

After sorting at Biffa Mechanical and Biological Treatment (MBT), any remaining household refuse is incinerated, mostly in Europe, some in England.

Landfill

A-Z of Recycling

Click on the links below to see what West Sussex County Council recycles, what supermarkets will take, our drop off locations, which are mainly in Horsham District (in partnership with TerraCycle) and other items that can be recycled while raising money for charity:

Other Sources of Advice

What can be recycled where

Still not sure where an item can be recycled?

Based on our latest research, we have compiled a list of key packaging items and where they can be recycled. Click on the image opposite to download and stick on your fridge.

If we have missed something out, please help us keep this page up-to-date by emailing

Download Leaflet

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