Independent South Kesteven household collection guide built around the exact steps residents need to complete.
Check the date, colour and exact next action
South Kesteven bin collection information only becomes useful when it tells you what to click and what to do next. Start with the postcode checker, choose your exact property, then save the container name together with its collection date.
If something goes wrong, use the task sections below rather than guessing: missed bin, wrong recycling, missing food caddy, garden subscription, damaged bin, bulky item, assisted collection or recycling-centre trip.
Need the answer fast?
For a normal household, check the exact address first. The standard rhythm is black general waste, silver mixed recycling, black general waste, then purple-lidded paper/card. Your outdoor food caddy goes out every week on the normal collection day.
Independent guide: BinCollectionGuide.org is not South Kesteven District Council. This page explains the council process before sending you to the live form, so you know what to select, what information to have ready and what should happen next.
Current battery-service exception: SKDC currently says it is unable to collect household batteries because of a collection/disposal issue.
Keep batteries out of every bin and caddy. Use a retailer battery point or a suitable Lincolnshire Household Waste Recycling Centre until the council confirms its kerbside battery service has resumed.
What to do after opening the official bin-day website
Click “Postcode bin day checker”
On the council’s bin-day page, ignore the printable calendars at first. The postcode checker is safer because it connects the result to your property.
Type the complete postcode
Inside the Collection Address section, type the postcode and press Search.
Choose the exact property
Open Select address and choose your house, flat or named property. Do not pick a similar-looking neighbour.
Continue to the collection result
Select Next. Record the container name beside its date rather than saving the weekday alone.
If you subscribe to garden waste, check its schedule separately
The postcode result identifies whether your property follows the light-blue or dark-blue garden-waste schedule.
Best household note: write “Silver + food caddy — Thursday — out Wednesday night” rather than “bins Thursday”.
If your address does not appear: do not choose another property to get a rough date. Use the council’s bin-and-sack/contact route because new builds and unusual properties can have a different setup.
Know the four-week rota without guessing
Black bin
General waste that cannot use a recycling, food, garden or specialist disposal route.
Silver bin
Clean, dry glass bottles/jars, plastic bottles/pots/tubs/trays and metal cans/tins.
Black bin
Your second general-waste collection in the four-week sequence.
Purple-lidded bin
Clean and dry paper and cardboard, kept separate from other recycling.
Food caddy: add it every week. It does not replace any week in the black/silver/purple cycle.
Do this now: check your exact property calendar once and save the next four main collection dates.
Which South Kesteven container should you use?
General waste
Use for:
- Nappies and hygiene waste
- Tissues
- Food-soiled paper/card
- Shredded paper
- Other non-recyclable household waste
Mixed recycling
Use for:
- Glass bottles and jars
- Plastic bottles
- Pots, tubs and trays
- Food/drink cans
- Clean foil
Paper & card
Use for:
- Clean paper
- Newspapers
- Magazines
- Cardboard boxes
- Cardboard tubes
Weekly food waste
Use for:
- Plate scrapings
- Meat, fish and bones
- Fruit and vegetables
- Bread, rice and pasta
- Tea bags and coffee grounds
Garden waste
Subscribed service:
- Grass cuttings
- Leaves
- Flowers
- Plants
- Suitable hedge cuttings
Move clean, dry paper/card to the purple-lidded bin.
Take accepted silver-bin recycling out of the bag and place it loose in the container.
Do not assume it is accepted in the silver bin. SKDC says contamination rules for plastic bags and wrappers remain strict.
Best method: search the item name in the A–Z when you are unsure instead of guessing from the material alone.
How to use the new food-waste service
Grey countertop caddy for collecting food scraps in the kitchen.
Black outdoor caddy with orange lid for the weekly collection.
Put the outdoor caddy out on the same day as your normal household bin or sack.
Anaerobic digestion
Collected food is turned into biogas and agricultural fertiliser.
Simple kitchen routine
Remove food from packaging
Do not put plastic trays, wrappers or other packaging into the food caddy.
Put scraps in the small caddy
Use the supplied liner or another permitted liner arrangement described by the council.
Transfer to the outdoor caddy
Tie the liner and place it into the 23L outdoor caddy.
Put the outdoor caddy out every week
Present it with the main household container due that week.
Did your property miss the caddy delivery?
Have ready: name, property postcode, exact address, and either an email address or contact number.
The live form is split into Customer Details and Details.
No room for the small indoor caddy? SKDC says you can use the outdoor caddy directly for bagged food waste.
Exactly what to check before opening the missed-bin form
Use the property checker. Wrong-bin presentation does not qualify.
If it was presented later and the crew already passed, SKDC will not return.
An overflowing container can fail the missed-collection conditions.
Wheelie-bin households cannot leave routine side waste with the collection.
The lorry system can record contamination against the property.
Use the boundary or the location agreed under an assisted collection.
What happens when you open the missed-bin form?
The council form currently uses:
- Details
- Customer Details
- Collection Due
Enter your name
Add first and last name in the customer details area.
Search your address by postcode
Type the postcode, press Search, then select the exact address.
Confirm the collection address
If your contact address is different from the collection property, use the separate collection-address fields.
Add email or contact number
Provide usable contact details so the council can link the report to you.
Continue to “Collection Due”
This is where the form checks the expected service against the property.
Why the form may reject your report: SKDC says bin lorries record contamination and bins that were not presented. If there is a recorded collection failure reason, the team may not return.
Decision: wrong bin / late / contaminated / side waste / blocked access = fix it. Correctly presented and still unemptied after 3pm = report it.
Garden waste: price, signup and what the website asks
What happens after you click “Join Now”?
The current form is divided into Details → Collection Details → Payment.
Enter first and last name
These are the first personal fields on the signup form.
Search the collection address
Enter postcode → press Search → choose Select address.
Answer whether this address had a previous subscription
The form asks if garden waste has previously been paid for at that collection address.
Confirm correspondence address
If your correspondence address is different, the form provides another postcode/address search.
Add contact number and email
Then choose Next to continue to Collection Details.
Choose the required collection service/bin setup
Review the charge before continuing to the Payment section.
Garden collection day: after subscribing, use the postcode bin-day checker to identify whether the address follows the light-blue or dark-blue garden schedule.
Before assuming a missed green bin: check subscription status, property schedule, correct contents and presentation.
Choose the right option for a damaged, missing or new bin
Bin physically damaged?
Choose Report a damaged bin.
Bin disappeared?
Choose Report a missing bin.
New-build property?
Choose the new-property bin or sack option that matches the property setup.
Currently on sacks?
The service includes options to swap from sacks to bins and request additional recycling sacks.
Standard wheelie-bin household: SKDC lists one 240L black bin, one 240L silver bin and one 240L purple-lidded bin as the normal set.
Rule: physical container problem → bin/sack form. Correct container skipped on collection day → missed-bin form.
Can you get an additional black bin?
Check household-size eligibility
The current rule requires five or more permanent residents living as a family at one address. Houses in multiple occupation are excluded from this route.
Submit the bin-and-sack form
Choose the option asking for an additional black bin.
Expect a waste audit
You must agree to the council checking current black-bin use and whether recycling is being maximised.
Wait for approval before paying
SKDC says payment is only required after Waste Services confirms that the additional capacity is needed.
Do not buy first: application → waste audit → council confirms need → payment.
Cannot move the bin to the boundary? Follow this route
Prepare evidence
A Blue Badge, DLA/disability record or letter from a carer or health professional can help the assessment.
Prepare for an assessment
A waste advisor needs to assess the property and identify the help required.
Agree the collection location
The service is designed so containers can be collected from an agreed accessible location.
What happens in the application?
The current online form contains Introduction → Customer Details → Collection Details.
At the start, it asks whether you agree to a waste-advisor visit. The form says the application cannot proceed without the property assessment.
Open the assisted application
Read the introduction and confirm that the household meets the reason for requesting help.
Agree to the assessment visit
The waste advisor needs to assess the circumstances and collection location.
Complete Customer Details
Provide the resident and property information requested by the form.
Explain the collection need
Use Collection Details to explain what assistance is required and the practical access situation.
Keep supporting evidence ready
The advisor can use relevant medical/disability or carer documentation when assessing eligibility.
Recurring difficulty moving the bin? Solve the presentation problem through assisted collection rather than repeated missed-bin reports.
How much it costs and exactly what happens in the booking form
Booking form structure
Contact Details → Disclaimer → Items for Collection → Collection → Payment
Use the address where the items will be collected
The form explicitly says the collection address controls which collection dates are offered.
Add email if possible
SKDC says an email address is used to confirm the booked slot and reference after payment.
Read the disclaimer
Check the collection conditions before continuing to the item-selection stage.
Select every item accurately
Only items listed on the confirmation order will be collected. Items cannot be added or amended after payment.
Choose an available collection date
The booking system shows dates based on the collection address.
Pay and save the reference
Keep the booking reference because it is needed for cancellation/refund requests.
Put the booked items outside by 7am
Place them at the edge of the property nearest the highway. Crews do not enter the property to remove items.
Cancellation: request it by 12pm on the working day before collection and have the booking reference ready.
Before paying: correct address + exact items + available date + 7am presentation plan.
Do not follow an old battery-collection instruction blindly
Current council notice: SKDC says it is temporarily unable to collect household batteries because of a problem with the collection and disposal service.
Never inside a household bin
Batteries can cause fires when damaged or crushed in collection vehicles.
Retailer battery point
Shops selling household batteries commonly provide a dedicated recycling container.
Household recycling centre
Use a suitable Lincolnshire recycling-centre route for accepted batteries.
When SKDC restarts the scheme: recheck the live battery page before returning to the old “bag attached to the bin handle” method.
For now: keep batteries out of black, silver, purple-lidded, green and food-waste containers.
How to plan a recycling-centre trip without being turned away
Find the nearest suitable centre
Use the Lincolnshire recycling-centre finder rather than assuming every site accepts the same materials.
Check the item before loading the vehicle
Confirm the chosen site accepts your exact waste type.
Check whether your vehicle needs a permit
Lincolnshire requires a free permit for vans, light-goods 4x4s and certain larger trailers.
Check today’s opening hours
Do this on the day of travel rather than relying on an old saved timetable.
Grantham example
Mowbeck Way, Alexandra Road, Grantham, NG31 7AH.
Current Grantham hours
Monday, Tuesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday: 9am–4pm. Wednesday and Thursday: closed.
Arrive before 3:50pm
Lincolnshire says gates may close ten minutes before the official closing time.
Major holiday closures
Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day are closed.
Trip checklist: correct site + item accepted + vehicle permit + today’s hours.
Use these links after choosing the correct task
Correct pattern: understand the task on this page → open the matching official service → complete only the fields needed for that task.
South Kesteven bin collection FAQs
How do I check my exact South Kesteven bin collection date?
Open the official postcode bin day checker, enter the full postcode, select Search, choose the exact property and continue to the collection result. Record the container type as well as the date.
What time do South Kesteven bins need to be out?
Current South Kesteven District Council guidance says household bins and sacks should be available at the required collection point by 7am.
When can I report a missed bin in South Kesteven?
A qualifying missed collection can be reported after 3pm on the scheduled collection day and must be reported within two working days of the original collection day.
How does weekly food waste collection work in South Kesteven?
Weekly household food-waste collections started from the week commencing 13 April 2026. Households use a 5 litre indoor caddy and a 23 litre outdoor caddy with an orange lid, with the outdoor caddy presented on the normal collection day.
How much is South Kesteven garden waste for 2026/27?
The 2026/27 annual charge is £55 for the first subscribed green bin and £45 for each additional subscribed bin. A new green bin costs £30 and delivery costs £15 per delivery.