Sign up for garden waste collections

Garden waste collections run from March/April to November in 2023. The last date for subscribing to the 2023 scheme was 1 September 2023.

Stickers, calendars and letters

Once you've subscribed, we'll send you:

• a sticker (to prove you have paid for the service this year) - write your address on the self-adhesive bin sticker and fix it to the bin, directly underneath the handle. If your sticker gets damaged or lost, we'll replace it free of charge. 
• a collection calendar. It will also tell you what you can put in the garden waste bin. Your collection day may change between years, and be on a different day from your rubbish and recycling collections. You can also look up your collection days in our My Durham section.
• bins if you have ordered new or extra ones

If you do not receive a calendar, sticker or bin, have lost your letter with the reference number on, or have any other general problems, you can report this using the garden waste enquiry form. 

What happens to your garden waste

We deliver garden waste directly to our own composting facility named 'Joint Stocks', located at Coxhoe, County Durham. Here garden waste is processed through a system called 'open windrowing'. Garden waste is first shredded and then stacked in long windrow piles, which are regularly turned to produce compost. The process is monitored and closely managed to quality standards. Compost produced through this process is currently used on site for landscape restoration, however it is intended it will be available in the future for resale to businesses and the general public.