Garden waste

The cost for garden waste collections is a one-off fee of £40, for a fortnightly service. Subscriptions run for twelve months from 1 April to 31 March of the following year.

Current subscription year - 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025

Applications for this year's service have now closed. If you are already registered for this year's garden waste scheme your collections will continue through the winter and until the end of March 2025.  

New subscription year - 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026

Applications for the next subscription year (1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026) will be accepted from 13 January 2025 until 28 November 2025.

All garden waste subscriptions end on 31 March.

You can register for the service online.

If you cannot sign up using My Chesterfield, you can do so over the phone by calling 01246 345285. If you are unable to use these methods card payments can be accepted in person at the Town Hall.

A one-off payment can be made using your credit or debit card.

We hope to establish a Direct Debit facility in the future.

You will be provided with a sticker to place on the back of your existing green bin, underneath the handles.

Bin crews will collect all bins with valid stickers displayed on them, they will also have a list of properties highlighting where they should be collecting green bins.

The sticker will be sent directly to you. If you do not receive your sticker after ten working days, please contact our customer services team.

Our collection crew will have details of your subscription, and your bin will not be missed even without a sticker.

No, the sticker will include the address where the collection has been paid for and our collection crew will have these details too.

We will only visit properties that are listed as having paid for the collection and only collect bins with the correct address on.

If you register for the service your collection schedule will remain the same.

Yes, you can share your green bin with your neighbours - only one of you will need to sign up for the service and it will be your responsibility to decide how to split the cost between yourselves.

The bin should be presented outside the property that signed up for the service and that property is responsible for any contaminated waste in the bin.

Yes, you can sign up for an additional garden waste bin on top of your subscription for an additional £15 for the first year, you can request this by calling the team on 01246 345285.

Residents can keep their green bin if they wish to use it for other purposes.

If it is not required, please contact our customer service team and we will arrange collection.

You can dispose of garden waste by taking it to a Household Waste and Recycling Centre, composting at home or by arranging through an authorised waste removal company.

If you choose to compost at home, you can buy a discounted compost bin from the Get Composting website.

You will not receive a discount on your council tax bill if you choose to opt out of garden waste collections. Those who wish to continue to receive the service, will pay a small additional charge through the registration process.

Chesterfield Borough Council collects council tax on behalf of a number of local organisations, but only around 10% of your bill goes towards the cost of providing all of the services we provide to our communities. This works out at 34 pence a day for the majority of households in Chesterfield (Band A properties). You can find out more in our Budget Conversation brochure.

The money raised through the charge will help offset the cost of providing this service and therefore help protect funding for essential services that the most vulnerable people in our communities rely on.

If you subscribe for the garden waste service, an assisted collection service will be automatically provided if you receive an assisted collection service for your black bin and recycling bin.

If you subscribe to the garden waste service, you will, at no extra cost, be able to continue putting food waste in your green bin. 

If you do not subscribe to the service, then you should put food waste in your black bin or compost it at home.

A new food waste collection service will be introduced in 2026, as mandated by new national legislation.

We do not anticipate that fly-tipping will dramatically increase because of the charge. However, if you do witness fly-tipping please report this online or call 01246 345345.

We recognise that occasionally residents do experience inappropriate use of their bin by a neighbour or by someone passing by, if this problem occurs you can contact our customer services team.

You can dispose of leaves or other plant litter by putting it in your garden waste bin if you have paid the annual subscription charge, by taking it to the Household Waste Recycling Centre or composting it at home.

In relation to leaf litter or blossom from street trees, we will clear this when it drops either on to the road or pavements. When this material falls on private land it is the responsibility of the landowner/householder.  

Proposals to introduce a small charge for the collection of garden waste was the focus of our Garden Waste Budget Conversation survey, which closed in early January 2024.

Thank you to everyone who took the time to have their say. Information gathered during survey, plus other comments and individual submissions put forward as part of the wider Budget Conversation and in response to the council’s social media posts, have been used to inform the development of this proposal.

You will not be eligible for a refund. The fee charged for bins for your new property are to cover ongoing maintenance and free replacements if/when they become damaged or unusable.

No, unfortunately there are no concessions for the garden waste collection scheme.