Booking a Recycling Centre time slot

Staff cannot currently help members of the public to unload their vehicles or dispose of their waste, except in the exceptional circumstances described below.

If you have a disability and require assistance, please do one of the following:

If you can unload the waste from your vehicle, but cannot access the steps or containers

Make a booking as normal.

When you arrive on site, please let a member of staff know, who will tell you where to unload the waste from your vehicle.

You do not need to contact us before your visit.

If you are unable to unload your waste from your vehicle 

Please email your request to waste.management@suffolk.gov.uk along with your booking details at least 24 hours before your booking so that we can arrange for staff to assist you.

You will need to load your vehicle so that your waste can be accessed from the boot of your car. When staff unload your vehicle they will be wearing gloves and a face covering and we request that visitors inside the car also wear a face covering. Please make sure that any waste you bring to site is of a manageable size and weight for staff to handle.

If you have a disability and are still unsure about how to proceed to use the Recycling centres please contact us at waste.management@suffolk.gov.uk.

Please see our Waste services and COVID-19 page for answers to these safety questions.

COVID-19 waste

If you're self-isolating you must place all personal waste (for example used tissues and disposable cleaning cloths) securely in a plastic bag or bin liner, then double bag it and store it for at least 72 hours (3 days) before placing it in general rubbish or bringing it to a Recycling Centre.

You must follow this guidance whether you are self-isolating as a precaution or if you've tested positive for (COVID 19). 

Visits are restricted to one visit per household or vehicle per 7 day period. This is to allow as many households and traders as possible to visit the sites, as visitor numbers are restricted to protect the health and safety of site staff and users..

We reserve the right to cancel any multiple bookings made in a 7 day period.

Cars should unload within 10 minutes if possible. Your booked 15 minute slot will allow for time to get in, parked and back out again.

Vans (including car derived vans), trailers and trade waste should unload within 25 minutes. Your booked 30 minute slot will allow for time to enter and leave the site.

All sites, except Haverhill accept trade waste. You will need to declare that you are bringing trade waste to site when you make a booking.

Please be aware that it is an offence under section 33 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 to deposit and transport trade/ business waste at Recycling Centres, without registering with the Environment Agency as a waste carrier and paying for disposal.

To get a more cost effective price you should separate your waste for recycling before going to site (e.g. into garden waste, wood, electricals etc). For our trade waste prices and information please visit our Trade Waste webpage on the Suffolk Recycles website. 

Yes. Foxhall Re-use and Bury St Edmunds Re-use shops are open.

Both shops are open:

• 9am to 5pm Monday to Saturday
• 10am to 4pm on Sunday

All Suffolk Recycling Centres will accept items for re-use (in the orange containers on sites), but you need to book an appointment to visit the Recycling Centre and drop off items.

You can visit either Foxhall or Bury Re-use Shop without a booking, however you will not be able to access the recycling centre and must park in the shop car park. Both shops are accepting direct donations.

Any donated items for re-use (either direct donations to shops or ones placed in orange containers) will be subject to a period of quarantine, in line with guidelines, prior to being sold in the shop.

There are a number of changes in place and some measures imposed to make sure that staff and members of the public follow national guidelines:

• numbers of people allowed within the shop will be limited
• 2 metre social distancing must be maintained
• a one-way system will be in place
• hand sanitising facilities will be available
• contactless card payment is encouraged
• you must wear a face mask while in the re-use shop

You can bring your garden waste to a Recycling Centre if it can not be safely stored at home.

Garden waste collections will be re-instated across Suffolk over the next few weeks. Find out what you can put in your composting bin. 

You can find top tips for managing your garden waste in the meantime. 

Find out more about home compost bin offers.

Initially the booking slots will be released for a week, then afterwards on a rolling daily basis to always maintain a forward view of 7 days ahead.

You may need to try several times to get a booking. We understand that this may be frustrating, but we're hoping that after a few weeks the initial demand will begin to reduce.

If you're unable to book a time slot online, please do not phone Customer Service to see if additional slots are available. The only time slots available will be shown on the public booking system. 

You can amend or cancel your booking up to 4 hours before your allocated time the day before your booking.

To amend or cancel your booking:

1. Go to your original email confirmation
2. Scroll to the bottom of the email
3. Click on the 'Change your appointment' link
4. From this you can either cancel or reschedule your booking. You can use the 'reschedule' button to change your vehicle registration details or book a new slot.

Email waste.management@suffolk.gov.uk if you have any problems amending or cancelling your booking or do not have your original email confirmation. We can amend this for you (but not within 4 hours of your booking).

No.

When you book you will enter the registration number of your vehicle. This will be your ID when you visit site, so you must come in the vehicle you registered.

Pedestrian visitors and cyclists will also have to use booking system and the booking will be in your name.

There will be many signs on site to remind people to keep 2 metres apart.

Cars will park in alternate bays.

Only one person (or two people from the same household, if needed to carry something heavy) will be allowed out of their vehicle to access containers at any one time.

We ask visitors to be courteous of staff and other users to maintain social distancing. Please wash your hands before and after visiting, and wear gloves when on site.

All vehicles apart from trailers listed below and vans with trailers are now allowed back on most sites.

The number of people accessing the sites at any one time is restricted in order to maintain social distancing on site to protect the health of staff and the public.

Vans (including car-derived vans) and any vehicle with a trailer are not able to access Haverhill, as these sites are too small to allow extra time for these vehicles to unload.

Trailers must be no more than 750kg max gross weight, single axle and unbraked. No other trailer size or type is permitted.

A vehicle that has rear seats and back windows and whose prime purpose is to carry passengers is classed as a car. This includes camper vans and twin pick-ups, but does not include car derived vans.

All other vehicles are classed as vans and/or commercial vehicles. E.g. a single cab pick-up is classed as a van/commercial vehicle

Car-derived vans will need to book as a van rather than a car. Car-derived vans, vans and trailers are not accepted at Haverhill or Leiston and you will need to book a slot at your next nearest site. For Haverhill use Sudbury or Bury St Edmunds, and for Leiston use Foxhall or Lowestoft.

Vans with trailers will not be allowed to come to sites at present whilst social distancing measures are in place.

You can take the same materials as usual. See full list of materials accepted on our Recycling Centre rules and charges page.

Please sort your waste to speed up your visit and practise social distancing when moving between containers. Please also observe the waiting signs when accessing containers.

If you are bringing chargeable household DIY waste to site, please let site staff know when you arrive and they will work out how much you have to pay.

Payment will be made through a kiosk to maintain social distancing. Contactless card payment only.

No trade waste is accepted on site at this time.

Plasterboard is only accepted at 4 Recycling Centres:

• Bury St Edmunds
• Foxhall
• Lowestoft
• Stowmarket.

Details of charges can be found here.

Yes. Compost will be available for sale on site. Please let site staff know and contactless card payment will be available at the kiosk.

If you represent a charity or school please contact us in the usual way via waste.management@suffolk.gov.uk with details of the recycling you wish to bring to site.

Thankfully, reports of such incidents in Suffolk have been relatively low but we are closely monitoring the situation.

With sites now open, we should not see any increase in fly-tipping. We would remind people that fly-tipping is a criminal offence that can result in prosecution.

If you're waiting for a booked time slot for your visit, please hold on to your waste until a slot becomes available.

You can find out how to report fly-tipping on our Suffolk Recycling website. 

Sites may have to close temporarily if a container needs to be emptied or compacted, and you may have to wait a little longer to access the site.

In extreme weather conditions or in unforeseen circumstances, sites may have to close for a longer period. In this case you would need to rebook your appointment for another time. Please check @Suffolkrc for up to date information regarding site closures.