Your office recycling checklist

There’s so much information out there about recycling that it’s become very confusing for people and businesses to know what they can and cannot recycle. The amount of misinformation out there leads people to recycle wrongly or even not at all in an office setting – and that’s just not good enough! It’s important that everyone in your business is clued up on the specific materials and products that can be recycled and that they are recycled without causing contamination – so we’ve written this blog to shine a bit of light on the dos and don’ts of office recycling. Remember, household recycling is completely different from the way we handle business recycling - you might be surprised to learn just how much recycling can be done for businesses! Our recycling checklist We’ve compiled a list of the most common materials we recycle, which we regularly review to make sure we’re providing the most efficient and varied service for our customers. We operate a separate collection service as it ensures that the recycling we collect is of high quality. High-quality recycling is highly valued by UK reprocessors (who turn the material back into new products), which is used to support the local and circular economies. Tins and cans All types of steel and aluminium cans can be recycled, so don’t throw away that soup tin, rinse it out and recycle it! You can also recycle clean aluminium foil and food trays and empty aerosol cans. There’s no need to remove ring-pulls from cans. Mixed glass Please only recycle clean glass bottles and jars and remember that different colours of glass can be mixed. Please remove any metal lids and ensure they are clean before recycling. Paper Paper products that can be recycled include – office paper, magazines, newspapers, windowed envelopes and hard and softback books. Staples and paperclips don’t need to be removed – if it tears, we take it! But remember, paper towels and tissue paper will usually be recycled with food or put in general waste. But do remember to use a secure shredding service like Changeworks Confidential to recycle your confidential documents to keep your customer and business data safe – we have a top ten list of which documents you should be shredding here. Cardboard Cardboard is very easy to recycle and should be flattened and tied into a bundle with tape or string. Alternatively, you can flatten your cardboard and put it into another cardboard box. Smaller pieces can be placed in a clear recycling bag. Cartons Empty, clean tetra pak and milk cartons can be recycled along with your cardboard. Plastic bottles We accept all types of empty plastic bottles, except for yoghurt pots and food trays as these are made of a lower-grade plastic. There’s no need to remove labels, and plastic bottle lids can be put back on – these actually help the bottle to stay squashed when they are recycled! Food waste All types of cooked and uncooked foodstuffs should be put in your food waste bin – just please don’t put in large bones or large quantities of shells. Mixed light bulbs All types of low energy bulbs and fluorescent tubes can be recycled, and we provide special containers for light bulbs and tubes, just ask the team! Batteries We accept all kinds of batteries apart from car batteries. We can also provide special containers for battery recycling. IT and electrical products If it has a plug, an electric lead or a battery – we can recycle it! Get in touch with us about a special uplift for electrical products. Printer cartridges We can recycle all makes of printer and toner cartridges. These should be collected in their original boxes or in a clear recycling bag. Furniture We accept all kinds of good quality office furniture that is suitable for being re-used – get in touch for a special uplift. Please don’t try to recycle any broken or heavily worn furniture. Wood and timber Yep, we even recycle wood! We can accept all types of wood except for Medium-density fibreboard (MDF). Changeworks Recycling makes it easy for your employees to know what goes in which bin, reducing the risk of confusion or contamination. You can also check out our guide on getting started with office recycling for further tips and advice, plus downloadable posters that take any chance of getting it wrong out of the equation!

For more information on Your office recycling checklist talk to Changeworks Recycling