Waste Recycling Collection Planning Guidelines
The provision of suitable facilities for the storage of waste together with appropriate access arrangements for waste collection vehicles are important aspects of any new or change-of-use development.
Careful consideration of requirements at the design and planning stages can make the difference between an effective waste storage and collection system and one which creates needless difficulties and frustration for both residents and the waste collection authority or contractor.
West Northamptonshire Council operates comprehensive waste and recycling schemes across the area with the aim to maximise recycling and divert as much waste as possible from landfill.
This guidance applies to the following types of development:
- all new dwellings, including single and multiple-occupancy residential developments, inclusive of private and social housing
- non-domestic/commercial development
- development involving change-of-use, particularly where the nature and / or volumes of waste produced are likely to differ from the previous use
This guidance should be read in conjunction with British Standard 5906:2005 Waste Management in Buildings, Code of Practice.
General Principles and Access Requirements
For household waste there is a four-stream system including:
- mixed recycling collection (plastic bottles, pots, tubs, trays, cartons, glass bottles and jars, tins, cans, foil, aerosols, paper and cardboard)
- food waste
- garden waste (opt-in, chargeable service)
- residual waste (anything that cannot be recycled)
Household batteries and electrical items are collected in a carrier bag from the top of the bin lid.
It is preferable to supply each household with their own wheeled bins because residents who are responsible for their own individual waste containers will recycle more and use the bins correctly.
Where there are flats, communal bins are sometimes the only option and space should be planned accordingly for adequate storage. Under these circumstances garden waste bins are not provided as there will be no garden waste. Separate bins will be available for recycling.
The Council operates a kerbside collection service for the wheeled bins and the kitchen caddy, whereby they are collected at the nearest point to the public highway.
Requirements for Waste Storage
Individual Domestic Properties
For individual low-rise dwellings, including houses, bungalows, and HMOs the storage requirements are:
- room for three 240 litre wheeled bins
- room for one 23 litre outdoor kitchen caddy
Wheeled bins should be able to sit side by side for ease of use by the resident.
The location of the bin storage area should be shown on the plans submitted with the planning application and should comply with the following:
- the storage area should be sited within 30m of the dwelling. In basic terms this means that householders should not have to walk more than 30m from their house to deposit their waste in their bin storage area
- on collection day, householders should not then have to carry their bins/waste more than 25m from their dwelling to the bin collection point
- it should be possible to move the container to the collection point without needing to pass through a building
- the pathway used to the collection point should be well drained, have a maximum gradient of 1 in 12 and preferably no steps – although a maximum of 1 may be permissible if unavoidable
- external storage areas should be away from windows or ventilators and should preferably be in the shade or under cover. They should also be located so as not to interfere with pedestrian or vehicle access to buildings
- where buildings are altered or extended, the waste storage area should be shown on the plan and care taken to ensure that the provision is not made worse. Alternatively the storage area could be moved
- consideration should be given to neighbouring properties for access and storage
You can view the document below for example diagrams of the above.
Flats
Where blocks of flats are proposed or existing premises converted such as above shops or other former retail space, waste collection should be through the use of communal collection containers or through provision of individual bins held in a communal location.
The containers are normally 1100 litre bins on four wheels which are provided by the Council.
Communal bins stores should not be provided for groups of houses unless (as explained above) they are serviced by a private road.
Communal bins must be housed in a covered storage area and the following issues have to be taken into account:
- stores should be no more than 10 metres from the kerbside or point where the vehicle would stop (vehicle access must be proven rather than assumed)
- to provide sufficient space for residents to deposit their waste, a minimum of 1m must be provided in front of the containers
- to provide sufficient space to remove the bins to empty them, a minimum of 150mm must be provide between and around containers
- where more than one bin is to be placed in a storage area, the bins must be positioned so that they can be easily accessed without users having to move other bins. In short, they must not be ranked or more than one deep
- a door or gate of a minimum opening of 1600mm should also be provided. Smaller doors for resident use can be provided in addition to this requirement
- the building should preferably have a key-coded or lockable entrance door to prevent non-residents from depositing their waste there
- the code (or key) must be supplied to the Council
- doors should open outwards, but not over the public highway or parking space
- a path leading from the kerbside to the bin store should be provided, with a minimum width of 1.5m. The path should be level or a gentle slope and should not contain steps
- stores should not be behind gates or security barriers that would prevent them being emptied
- the structure must be robust enough to withstand everyday use
- stores should not be behind designated parking bays or require the movement of containers past or through legally parked cars
- communal bin compounds should be far enough away from housing units so as to reduce the impact of noise during bin use and collection but sufficiently close for easy use. Eliminating the need for collection vehicles to reverse will also assist in keeping noise to a minimum
- dropped kerbs should be provided
- a block of four flats/apartments needs an enclosed bin storage area with a foot space of 3m by 2m to accommodate the waste and recycling containers. Developers are asked to pro-rata this up or down dependent on the size of the development
Non-Domestic/Commercial Development
For non-domestic developments, the requirements will depend on several factors, including:
- the size and type of the development
- the planned amount of waste segregation to be carried out on site
- the intended frequency of collection
In all cases there will be an expectation that commercial waste will be stored within the curtilage of the business property.
Consideration must be given to all types of waste that are likely to be generated during the sites use, including any hazardous and clinical wastes for developments such as:
- medical centres
- veterinary surgeries
- residential care homes
- day care centres
Developments involving change of use
Where planning permission is being sought in respect of a change of use, it is essential that suitable provision is made for waste storage and collection and particular attention must be given in cases where:
- the types and/or quantities of waste will increase in comparison with the previous use of the development
- food and food packaging waste will be produced, for instance where the application involves Use Classes A1 (shops), A3 (restaurants and cafes), A4 (drinking establishments), A5 (hot food takeaways) and D2 (assembly and leisure)
In all cases the onus is on the developer to demonstrate that the proposed change of use will not result in health and safety, nuisance or operational issues arising from the storage and collection of waste.
Where the development is for mixed housing and commercial use, there should be sufficient storage capacity for both purposes.
Particular attention should be paid to the following requirements:
- waste should be stored in a designated area within the boundary of the property (or allocated shared area). The storage area should not be visible from the front of the building
- under no circumstances should any waste or waste containers be stored on the street
- consideration should be given to whether the location of the storage area is likely to give rise to noise or odour issues for neighbouring properties (for example near to a neighbour’s window or when bins are emptied
- waste storage facilities should be vandal-proof and secure
- the location of the waste storage area should be such that it is not necessary for bins to be brought through the building for emptying
- the storage area should be big enough to accommodate the predicted types and volumes of waste to be produced by the development including separate space for recycling
- there should be suitable access and egress to the collection point for waste collection vehicles and the waste operatives must be able to readily transport bins from the storage area to the collection point
Requirements for vehicle access and approaches
It is Council policy that under most circumstances, we do not take waste collection vehicles onto private property for the purpose of collecting domestic waste.
In general terms, the collection vehicles will only travel along roads that are built to an adoptable standard and will not enter areas classed as private driveways.
The road should be constructed so that refuse vehicles can enter and exit mainly in a forward direction, eliminating or reducing as far as possible the need to reverse. Where provided, turning circles or hammerheads should be capable of accommodating the largest vehicle which will be using them (up to 32 tonnes gross weight, 11.2m long and 2.55m wide).
When turning heads are introduced there should be a system in place preventing these from being obstructed. Consideration should be given for parking restriction measures to achieve this.
However, there are some rare circumstances where it is necessary to drive onto private property. These are mainly where there are health and safety concerns over stopping the vehicle elsewhere – on a busy road for example or the distance from the storage point to the collection point that may create a manual handling risk.
If this is believed to be the only option and the private drive serves more than 10 dwellings/flats the following will need to be addressed:
- an indemnity will be required from the developer/landowner and the developer/landowner will be notified of this via an informative on the planning decision notice
- the Council will only consider obtaining an indemnity from a management company rather than from a group of residents
- these private areas will be expected to be constructed to an adoptable standard in terms of loading (to withstand up to a 32 tonne waste collection vehicle) and layout for this vehicle measuring 11.2m x 2.55m with turning circles or hammerheads to facilitate this. Details should be submitted with the planning application
- to avoid the need for an indemnity, private driveways will need to be less than 25m in length from the edge of the adoptable highway. This takes account of the need to ensure that householders are not required to carry their waste more than 25m from their dwelling to the bin collection point
- if a private driveway must be more than 25m long (such as a barn conversion for instance) but serves less than 10 houses, the householders will be expected to bring their bins to the bin collection point at the edge of the public highway
Container sizes
You can view diagrams of container sizes in the document below.
Checklist for Developers
Developers can access a checklist in the document below.
Last updated 04 April 2025