Clinical and hazardous waste

Diabetic waste

We provide a free collection of diabetic sharps waste for residents. Diabetic sharps include:

  • needles
  • syringes
  • lancets used with finger-pricking devices
  • clippers

Please do not dispose of sharps in the black bin as needles can cause injury and pass on infection.

Request a diabetic sharps waste collection 

Domestic clinical waste

For all other clinical waste, we provide a chargeable collection service for domestic households.

We will collect:

  • clinical waste (infectious) including swabs, dressings and tubes
  • sharps including needles

If you are a patient we recommend you first contact your health visitor, district nurse, care assistant, or the place that supplied the clinical sacks/sharps box, as they may be able to arrange an alternative.

All requests for patient collections should be referred through their medical practitioner in the first instance using our clinical waste referral form (PDF).

Commercial clinical waste

We provide a clinical waste service for businesses such as dental practices, nursing homes, residential homes, beauty salons and tattooists.

Clinical waste includes:

  • catheter bags, stoma bags and tubing
  • human or animal tissue
  • swabs, dressing and pads
  • syringes, needles or other sharp instruments

Weekly, fortnightly or monthly collections are offered, to meet your business needs.

Request a commercial clinical waste collection

Check what counts as clinical waste

Type of wasteInclusionsDisposal route
Clinical (infectious healthcare) waste – if you have an infection

Infected dressings

Infected swabs

Infected human tissue

Clinical waste collection

Email Commercial Services for more information

Sharps

All needles used for injecting

Disposable instrument blades

Dedicated sharps box collection

Email Commercial Services for more information

Household waste

Catheter bags – with contents emptied into the toilet

Stoma bags – with contents emptied into the toilet

Incontinence pads

Syringes with needles removed

Tubing, and ‘peg’ or stomach feeding equipment

Securely bagged in your household black bin or sack
Unwanted and out-of-date medicines

Tablets

Liquids

Epipens

Return to a local pharmacy
Medicine packaging

Cardboard boxes

Aerosol cleaning sprays

Empty plastic bottles

Plastic packaging

Recycling bin or sacks (Rinsed and squashed as usual as required)
Cytotoxic waste       Purple lidded sharpsEmail Commercial Services for more information

Hazardous waste 

Hazardous waste contains substances which are harmful to humans or the environment, including flammable, toxic or carcinogenic materials.

Examples of hazardous waste include but are not restricted to:

  • asbestos
  • chemicals, such as brake fluid or print toner
  • solvents including paint
  • pesticides
  • oils such as car oil (not including edible oils)
  • equipment containing ozone depleting substances, such as fridges

A licensed contractor must be contracted to remove hazardous waste. 

Visit the Hazardous waste page on GOV.UK for further information.