Book a bulky waste collection
Upholstered domestic seating now being collected separately
We have recently had to make a change to the way the Bulky Waste Collection Service operates.
What has changed?
Upholstered domestic seating (including sofas, armchairs, upholstered dining chairs, foot stools, futons, bean bags and cushions) are now being collected separately from other types of bulky waste.
What difference will I notice?
This change will not have any impact on the way you use the Bulky Waste Collection Service. You will still complete and pay for your booking in the same way. The only difference is that if your booking contains a mix of upholstered and non-upholstered items (a sofa and a fridge, for example), then it will be completed in two stages (because we now need to send a separate, dedicated collection crew to pick up the upholstered items). In these circumstances, the first part of the collection will take place on the day you chose when making the booking. The second part of the collection will take place within two working days (Monday-Friday).
Why has this change been made?
This change is in response to recent updates to UK legislation. New regulatory guidance from the Environment Agency says that any ‘Waste Upholstered Domestic Seating’ (WUDS) that may contain Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) must be collected and disposed of separately from other waste streams. POPs are a group of flame-retardant chemicals that were used until 2019 on upholstered furniture in order to meet fire safety regulations. Whilst POPs are perfectly safe to have in your home, the concern is that they can cause significant harm to the environment and human health (by entering the food chain) if they are not disposed of correctly. So all local authorities now have to collect and dispose of items that may contain POPs in a very specific way.