Garden Waste Subscription Service

Our garden waste collection is an opt-in paid subscription service. If you wish to receive a fortnightly green-lidded bin collection you will need to subscribe and pay an annual fee.

Subscriptions for the 2024-2025 season will open in March 2024. Fees and charges will be published on 1 March 2024.

We will contact previous subscribers in February/March with information on how to renew.

How does it work?

  • To have your garden waste collected, you need to sign up to our paid subscription service. Registration for subscriptions are currently closed and will reopen in March 2024.
  • Once subscribed you will receive a subscription sticker with a unique serial number. Attach the sticker to the body of your Dacorum Borough Council green-lidded bin to make it eligible for collection. If a bin does not have a sticker then we will not collect it.
  • Green-lidded bins will be collected fortnightly from the beginning of March until the end of November. Find out when your next collection is.

What are the alternatives?

If you decide not to sign up to the paid service, there are many ways you can still recycle your garden waste. You can compost it in a home composting bin and turn it into valuable and nutrient-rich food for your garden, or take it to your local recycling centre

Frequently asked questions

For further information, please see our frequently asked questions below:

Subscribing to the service

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How the service works

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Why we charge

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  • Why do you charge?

    Not everyone needs a garden waste collection service. The majority of residents who live in flats do not manage their own gardens and so do not need this service. Many residents do not create enough garden waste to warrant a fortnightly collection, or already choose to have compost bins to break down their garden waste. Making the service a paid-for subscription means that only those who are using the service are paying for it. This makes it fairer for everybody and enables Council Tax to be spent more effectively.

  • I already pay Council Tax, why are you charging me twice?

    The Council Tax that you pay helps to provide mandatory services, which have to be prioritised. Garden waste is a discretionary service, not a mandatory one, meaning that it is a service we are not legally required to provide. Having a self-funded, optional service for garden waste helps us to protect our other essential public services.

  • Do other councils charge for collecting garden waste?

    More than two thirds of councils in England currently charge for this service. The majority of other councils in Hertfordshire charge for garden waste collections - this includes St Albans, Watford, Three Rivers, East Herts, North Herts, Broxbourne and Welwyn Hatfield.

  • Has the charge led to an increase in fly-tipping of garden waste?

    Fly-tipping is the illegal dumping of waste. Whether a single bag or a truck load of rubbish, it is a criminal offence punishable by an unlimited fine or imprisonment.

    We have not seen a noticeable increase in garden waste fly-tipping since the subscription was brought introduced.

Page Last Updated: Tuesday, 02 January 2024 at 09:16 AM