Bins will be collected on their usual days over Christmas and the New Year in Verwood.

With Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day falling on the weekend this year, rubbish and recycling collections over the festive period will not be on a different day and everyone should put their bins out on their regular collection day.

There are some other important things to remember about your rubbish and recycling collections over Christmas: –

• Dorset Council will collect up to two extra sacks of rubbish beside your bin on your first rubbish collection after Christmas Day
• no garden waste collections will take place between Christmas Day and Monday 10 January
• household recycling centres will be open from 9am to 4pm daily, except Christmas Day, Boxing Day, and New Year’s Day
• extra recycling, including glass and food, will be collected on your recycling collection day, provided it has been separated correctly and placed in a suitable sturdy container that can be easily lifted by one person (no bags or cardboard boxes)

Many households produce extra waste over Christmas, but much of it can be recycled using your kerbside Recycle for Dorset service. Remember that you can recycle:

• cooked and uncooked food, using your food waste bin
• wrapping paper (not foil or glittery paper, please)
• cardboard boxes (flattened and broken up, please)
• cardboard and hard plastic packaging (no polystyrene or thin film)
• Christmas cards and envelopes

Dorset Council does not collect Christmas trees of any kind with rubbish or recycling at the kerbside. You can recycle your real Christmas tree by:

• home composting it
• cutting it up and placing it in your garden waste bin
• taking it to a household recycling centre
• booking a Christmas tree collection with a Dorset-based charity or service (check local availability).

Cllr Laura Miller, Dorset Council’s Portfolio Holder for Customer and Community Services, said: “Normally bin collection days are a little different over Christmas, so we wanted to make sure everyone is aware that this year everyone needs to put their bins out on their usual day of the week, even if it’s a bank holiday.

I also want to pass my thanks and best wishes to all the waste services employees who will be working hard over the busy Christmas period. We can all make their jobs a little easier by going into the festive period with empty glass boxes and making sure our waste is separated correctly and put out on the right day.”