Simpler Recycling for Businesses: Workplace Compliance Guide

Micro-firms must comply with the workplace recycling requirements by 31 March 2027.

Businesses and other workplaces with 10 or more full-time-equivalent employees have already been required to comply since 31 March 2025.

A micro-firm is a business or organisation with fewer than 10 full-time-equivalent employees across the whole organisation.

Micro-firms do not need to register or apply for the temporary exemption, but they must comply with the relevant requirements by 31 March 2027.

Part-time employees are counted as a proportion of a full-time role, based on the hours they work.

Volunteers, contractors and self-employed workers are not included when calculating the number of full-time-equivalent employees.

No. The threshold is calculated across the whole business, rather than separately for each workplace.

For example, a company with three locations and five employees at each location would have 15 employees in total. It would therefore not qualify as a micro-firm, and the recycling requirements would apply at all three locations.

Workplaces must separate the following main waste streams before collection:

• Dry recyclable materials, including paper, cardboard, plastic, metal and glass
• Food waste
• Non-recyclable or residual waste

Businesses that generate garden waste must also arrange for it to be recycled or composted where this provides the best environmental outcome.

Specialist materials such as hazardous waste, electrical equipment and batteries require appropriate collections and must not be placed in standard recycling bins.

Yes. The food-waste requirements apply even if a workplace does not prepare or serve food.

Office food waste can include tea bags, coffee grounds, fruit peel, leftovers and food brought into the workplace by employees or visitors. Employees should not be asked to take workplace food waste home for disposal.

No. The requirements apply regardless of how little food waste a workplace generates.

Even small quantities, such as tea bags, coffee grounds, fruit peel and lunchtime leftovers, must be kept separate from dry recycling and general waste.

Not necessarily. Food waste must be kept separate from dry recycling and general waste, but some dry recyclable materials can be collected together where the collection arrangement is compliant.

Paper and cardboard must be collected separately from plastic, metal and glass by default. However, a waste collector may collect these materials together where it has completed the required assessment and established that separate collection is not technically or economically practicable, or would provide no significant environmental benefit.

DCW can assess the waste produced at your premises and recommend an appropriate combination of containers and collections.

The appropriate collection arrangement will depend on the service provided by your waste collector and the types and volumes of glass produced.

Glass bottles and jars must be separated from food and general waste. DCW can advise whether your glass can form part of an assessed recycling collection or requires its own dedicated container.

Yes. The government has announced its intention to delay mandatory collections of plastic films and flexible packaging from 31 March 2027 to 1 April 2030.

The revised date is intended to apply to both workplaces and households. It covers materials such as bread bags, crisp packets, wrapping film and carrier bags. The regulations are expected to be formally amended to reflect the new timetable.

This delay does not change the 31 March 2027 deadline for micro-firms to separate food waste and the other core recyclable materials.

The Environment Agency can investigate a workplace that is not separating its waste correctly and issue a compliance notice.

A notice may be issued to the business producing the waste or, where relevant, to a landlord, facilities management company or waste collector responsible for presenting or collecting it. Failing to comply with a compliance notice is an offence and may result in enforcement action.

A business will not automatically receive a fixed fine because an individual item has been placed in the wrong bin. However, persistent or material non-compliance can lead to a compliance notice from the Environment Agency.

Failing to comply with that notice is an offence and can result in enforcement action and financial penalties. Non-compliant businesses and other relevant premises may also be charged for the Environment Agency’s regulatory work.

The Environment Agency is responsible for regulating workplace compliance with Simpler Recycling in England.

It can investigate reports of non-compliance, inspect waste arrangements and issue compliance notices where a business, workplace or private waste collector is not meeting its legal responsibilities.

Responsibility depends on how waste services are managed at the premises.

If a landlord or facilities management company arranges waste collections on behalf of occupiers, it may be responsible for presenting the waste correctly. However, businesses still have a duty to ensure their commercial waste is stored, transferred and disposed of safely and legally.

Businesses should confirm responsibilities with their landlord and make sure the collection arrangements cover all required waste streams.

Waste produced by customers and visitors is covered by the workplace requirements.

If a business provides public or customer-facing bins, it must ensure recyclable materials and food waste are separated before collection. Providing clearly labelled recycling and food-waste bins in the places where waste is generated can make this much easier.

Recycling becomes contaminated when incorrect items are placed in a recycling container or when recyclable packaging contains too much food or liquid residue.

Businesses should use clear signage, position bins together and monitor recurring contamination. A waste collector may refuse heavily contaminated recycling or charge for it as non-recyclable waste. The Environment Agency can also consider contamination when assessing whether a workplace is complying with the rules.

Start by confirming your total number of full-time-equivalent employees and auditing the waste generated across every business location.

You can then identify the required waste streams, arrange suitable containers and collections, introduce clear signage and explain the new system to employees. Preparing early can reduce contamination, avoid rushed changes and ensure the right services are in place before 31 March 2027.

DCW can carry out a waste audit to identify what your business produces, where waste is generated and which materials currently enter general waste.

We can then recommend suitable containers, collection frequencies and recycling services for your premises. We will also help you introduce a practical system that supports compliance while minimising disruption, contamination and unnecessary general waste.