Managing tenants' waste and recycling
As a landlord, property manager, or housing provider, you play a vital role in shaping how waste and recycling are handled at your properties.
This page is here to support you in meeting your responsibilities under the government’s new Simpler Recycling legislation — and to make it easier for you and your tenants to do the right thing.
By ensuring your tenants have the right bins and clear information, you can help boost recycling rates, reduce contamination, and cut down on unnecessary waste.
On this page
— Food waste recycling for your properties
— Contamination - what it is and why it matters
— Why your role matters
— What you should do
— Helpful resources
— Need help or have questions?
Food waste recycling for your properties
From October 2025 to March 2026, we’re introducing a new food waste collection service across all households in the Winchester district. This is part of our commitment to reducing waste and improving recycling—and we’re here to help you prepare.
Before collections begin in each area, we’ll deliver the necessary new bins and resources directly to your properties.
For Houses and HMOs (Houses of Multiple Occupation):
- One 23L outdoor food waste bin per property
- One 5L kitchen caddy per household for indoor food waste collection
For Communal Properties (e.g., flats with shared bin stores):
- One 140L food waste bin per bin store
- One 5L kitchen caddy for each individual flat
Each household will receive their bins during the three weeks before collections start, along with:
- An information leaflet explaining how to use the food waste service
- A starter roll of compostable liners for the kitchen caddy
Communal bins will be lined with plastic to help keep them clean, with the liner changed every week when the bin is emptied. However, washing out the bins and keeping them in a sanitary condition remains the responsibility of the property owner or managing agent / housing association. As you can appreciate, food waste bins may be smellier and will require regular cleaning to keep smells to a minimum.
When will food waste collections start?
Food waste recycling is being rolled out in phases. To find out when collections begin for your properties, enter the address at www.winchester.gov.uk/bins.
The start date will also be printed on the leaflet delivered with the bins so your tenants and residents will know when collections start.
You will find helpful FAQs on our food waste webpages to help you answer any questions your tenants may have about food waste recycling.
Contamination - what it is and why it matters
When bins contain the wrong items — or recyclables are dirty or wet — it’s called contamination.
The new rules are stricter in relation to contamination, so it’s important that your waste is sorted and put in the correct bins.
Contamination can have serious consequences:
- Under the new recycling regulations, our waste collectors cannot accept contaminated recycling for collection. They will leave a bin hanger explaining why the bin was not emptied. You will need to sort it out or arrange for a private contractor to do it for you at your own expense.
- If bins are not emptied, this could lead to overflows, complaints and health & safety issues.
- If contaminated material is picked up for recycling, entire vehicle loads can be rejected, wasting valuable resources.
- Sorting facilities can be damaged, especially by food waste or soft plastics.
- The council may be forced to spend money on fixing contamination related issues rather than supporting other essential services.
Common contaminants to watch out for:
- Wet or dirty items in the recycling bins
- Incorrect materials (e.g., plastic bags in recycling)
- Packaging or other waste in food waste bins
- Greasy pizza boxes in the recycling bins
Why your role matters
When waste ends up in the wrong bin, it doesn’t just harm the environment—it can also drive up costs, for everyone. With your help, we can keep waste management efficient and affordable, so that funding can stay focused on the things that matter most to you, your tenants and our communities.
What you should do
As a landlord or property manager, you can make a big difference by:
- Making sure your tenants have the right bins with enough capacity
- Making sure your bins, and bin stores (for communal properties), are tidy and accessible for our collection teams
- Helping your tenants by making sure they know how to deal with waste and recycling in Winchester – especially if they’ve come from outside the area
- Clearly labelling your bins to help people use them correctly and avoid contamination
- Monitoring any contamination at your properties and taking action to resolve any recurring issues
Together, we can reduce waste, protect the environment, and keep costs down.
Helpful resources
- A recycling poster for noticeboards and welcome packs – clearing showing what goes in each bin and what is not allowed
- A leaflet with clear guidance on how to recycle food waste
- We've developed a set of bin stickers in various sizes and shapes which can help residents identify what goes in each bin and how to use them correctly. As part of the upcoming food waste roll out - from October 2025 - our Recycling Officers will be visiting all the communal bin stores in the district. You can either download and print a set of stickers for your bins and label them yourself, or if you have a building with bin stores, we'll come to your property in due course and do it for you. if you really don't want us to label your bins or you have any concerns, please get in touch by emailing recycling@winchester.gov.uk
Need help or have questions?
We’re here to support you. If you have questions or would like to discuss how Simpler Recycling may affect your properties, please contact our Waste and Recycling Team at recycling@winchester.gov.uk