From Monday 31 March 2025, all workplaces with 10 or more full-time employees will be required to separate their waste into three different categories under the new Simpler Recycling legislation (micro-firms with less than 10 full-time employees should ensure they comply by 31 March 2027).

The new rules are being introduced to make recycling your waste simpler and consistent across all areas of England, which will contribute to reaching the recycling target of 65% set for 2035 by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA).

What changes will you need to make?

The new legislation will change the way many workplaces manage their waste. Businesses will now need to ensure that they arrange separate collections for the following waste categories:

Mixed Dry Recycling

Businesses will need to ensure they separate mix dry recyclables and arrange for these to be collected separately. Items which fall into this category include:

  • Glass - such as drinks bottles and rinsed, empty food jars
  • Plastics – such as rinsed, emptied food containers, food trays and bottles
  • Paper and Cardboard – such as newspapers, scrap paper, envelopes, and cardboard boxes
  • Metal – such as empty drinks cans, rinsed food tins, empty aerosols, and clean aluminium foil and food trays

Food Waste

Businesses that generate food waste will also be required to have a separate food waste collection. Items which are included in this are:

  • Food leftovers
  • Waste generated by preparing food (of any volume, including if the workplace does not serve food or have a canteen) including peelings, tea bags, and coffee grounds

Residual Waste (general waste)

Most businesses will already have a residual waste collection. This covers most of the items that cannot be recycled such as:

  • Hygiene products such as nappies, paper towels, cleaning wipes
  • Highly contaminated food packaging which can’t be washed
  • Unrecyclable packaging such as polystyrene

If your business generates any form of controlled waste such as infectious medical waste or hazardous waste, you should continue your current arrangements of having this collected by a specialist provider.

Which businesses do the changes affect?

Any business or workplace premise that generates waste similar in nature and composition to household waste must follow the new rules across all their operations (including staff kitchens). This includes all relevant non-domestic premises such as:

  • Offices
  • Retail and wholesale
  • Transport and storage
  • Hospitality businesses such as cafes, restaurants and hotels
  • Places of education such as schools and universities
  • Care homes
  • Healthcare premises such as hospitals and GP surgeries
  • Charities
  • Charity shops selling donated goods that came from a domestic property
  • Places of worship
  • Residential hostels providing accommodation to people with no permanent address
  • Premises used only or mainly for public meetings

If your business is not listed here, we recommend checking the government website to ensure your business complies.

Micro-firms (with less than 10 full-time employees in total) are exempt until 31 March 2027.

FAQ’s

My business has three locations with five staff members at each. Does this mean the changes don’t apply to me yet?

No. The legislation covers the business as a whole, rather than individual premises in certain locations, therefore the changes will still apply to you.

My business has volunteers and part-time staff members. Do they count toward the total of 10 full-time staff members?

If your business has a mixture of part-time and full-time staff, you can work out the Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) by taking the total hours worked by all employees and dividing this by the number of hours worked by a standard full-time staff member. Volunteers do not count toward your total.

What happens if I don’t comply?

If you do not comply with the requirements by Monday 31 March 2025 (31 March 2027 for micro firms) you are at risk of receiving a compliance notice from the Environment Agency.

It is an offense to fail to comply with a compliance notice and enforcement action may then be taken against your business which could lead to prosecution and or fines.

Along with data reporting from local authorities and waste collection contractors, the general public will also be able to report a business if they believe they are not complying with the rules.