Garden Waste Collection Service

The Council provides a fortnightly garden waste collection service. You can recycle your garden waste by hiring a garden waste wheelie bin (£30 per year, please ring 01622 602162 to order). If you already have a garden bin and would like to pay your invoice online, please follow this link. Alternatively you can purchase Maidstone Borough Council green garden waste sacks (£2.50 for 5) from council receptions, Express Dairies Milkmen and local retailers listed on this page below.

Garden waste will only be collected if presented in a garden waste wheelie bin or Maidstone Borough Council green garden waste sacks.

Please note: Animal waste from small vegetarian animals such as rabbits, hamsters etc, can only be collected in garden waste wheeled bins, not green garden sacks as these have to split manually before emptying.

Yes Please

Grass Cuttings

Leaves and small Branches

Flowers and Plants

Hedge Prunnings

No Thanks

Kitchen Scraps

Earth

Stones

Plant Pots/Trays

Important changes to garden waste sacks:

We will shortly be making changes to the type of sack we use for our garden waste service.

We have made the decision to use compostable bags made from potato starch, as these are far more environmentally friendly and will significantly improve the collection service as the bags do not have to be split before emptied into the back of the collection vehicle. The compostable bags are more expensive to produce and therefore we have had to increase the price to £3.25 per roll (5 sacks). The cost of garden waste bins will remain the same at £30 per year.

The new bags will be available from your local stockist from Monday 4th October 2010.
You will be able to exchange any unused rolls of plastic sacks for the new compostable sacks (paying the 75p difference) at your local retailer between 4th October and 31st October 2010.
Either type of sack will be accepted for collection up to the 18th December 2010.
Only the new compostable sacks will be collected from 10th January 2011.

You can purchase your garden waste sacks from the following retailers:

Allington

Post Office, Hildenborough Crescent

Barming

Costcutters, 1-2 Marlborough Parade

Madon & Sons, 15/16 Bull Orchard

Bearsted

Bearsted News, 141 Ashford Road

Taylors Newsagent, 4 The Parade, Bearsed Green

Potted Garden Nursery, Ashford Road

Bearsted Parish Council , Madginford Hall, Egremount Road

Bredhurst

Bredhurst Parish Council, Bredhurst

Chart Sutton

Pleasant View Garden Centre, Plough Wents Road

Coxheath

Fareways (Londis), Heath Road

Detling

Detling Post Office, The Street, Detling

Downswood

Spires Newsagent, 2-3 Spires Centre, Derringwood Drive

Grafty Green

Grafty Green Garden Centre, Headorn Road

Grove Green

Newsrack, 6 Grove Green Centre

Harrietsham

Harrietsham Stores, 70/72 West Street

Headcorn

Post Offce & Stores, 28 High Street

Hollingbourne

Christopher's, 50-52 Eyhorne Street

Hollingbourne Parish Council, 1 Eyhorne Green Cottages, Muskett Lane

Kingswood

Avenue Stores, 29 Charlesford Avenue

Lenham

McColls, 57-58 Honeywood Road, Lenham

Lenham Ironmongers, 8 Faversham Road, Lenham

Loose

Loose Post Office, Old Loose Hill

Maidstone

Mini Market,80 Boxley Road, Maidstone

Foley Park News, 1 Hatherall Road

Kingsley Post Office, 118 Kingsley Road

Maidstone Borough Council, The Gateway,King Street, Maidstone

Sejal's, West Park Road

Manak Supermarket, 70-72 Hartnup Street

Tourist Information Centre, Town Hall, High Street

Premier Stores, 97A Tonbridge Road

Betty News, 197 Upper Fant Road

Wheeler Wines, 108 Wheeler Street

Capital Express, 11 Snowdon Parade, Snowdon Avenue, Vinters Park

Payless Stores, Queens Road, Maidstone

Spa Stores, 4-6 Upper Fant Road, Maidstone

Mangravet

Mangravet Post Office, 4 Mangravet Avenue

Marden

Crowhurst & Thompsett, High Street, Marden

Stanleys of Marden, Albion Road, Marden,

Parkwood

Express Dairies, Coldred Road

Parkwood News, 16 Parkwood Parade

Penenden Heath

Post Office & Stores, Penenden Heath

Ringlestone

Ringlestone Post Office, 81 Chatham Road

Ringlestone Farm Shop, 20 Calder Road

Senacre

Mace, 11-12 Senacre Square

Shepway

Homeflair, 3 Northumberland Court, Northumberland Road

Staplehurst

Henhurst Farm Shop, Pinnock Lane

Spuds & Buds, High Street

Staplehurst Parish Council, Village Centre

Stockbury

MB Farms

Parsonage Lane, The Street

Stockbury, Sittingbourne

Sutton Valance

The Post Office, Broad Street

Teston

Post Office & Stores, Church Street

Tovil

The Post Office, 4-6 Church Street

Walderslade

Boxley Parish Council, Beechen Hall, Wildfell Close

Yalding

Costcutter, Benover Road

What happens to my garden waste?

Garden waste collected in the borough is composted at a large commercial facility.

You can then buy the compost from your local Household Waste Recycling Centre in Tovil, Maidstone (£2.50 for a 40 litre bag).

How else can I get rid of my garden waste?

You can use our Bulky Collection Service or by taking it to your Household Waste Recycling Centre in Tovil. Or try home composting.

Why do I have to pay for the sacks/bin hire?

The Council has a legal duty under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 to collect household waste from all domestic properties within the Borough. (The Environmental Protection Act 1990, Section 45(1)).
But there are types of household waste for which a charge for collection may be made and garden waste is one of those (The Collection and Disposal of Waste Regulations 1988, Regulation 5).
The Environmental Protection Act 1990 defines 'household waste' as waste from: 'a domestic property, that is to say, a building or self contained part of a building which is used for the purposes of living accommodation.'
Maidstone Borough Council decided the fairest method would be to charge only those who used the service via Maidstone Borough Council green garden waste sacks/garden bins.
When residents buy Maidstone Borough Council green garden waste sacks or hire a garden waste bin, they pay for the collection and disposal of garden waste and not the composting.
This way residents pay directly for a garden waste collection based on usage of the service, rather than a standard charge through the council tax payable by everyone whether they use the service or not.