The brown bin will remain at the property and will not be returned as a charge will apply for any replacement bin in the future.

Brown bins put out for collection without displaying a valid permit will not be emptied.

Please refer to your collection calendar.

*This is subject to festive collection arrangements and service disruptions. 

No. The bin calendar is only available online. Please refer to your collection calendar.

You can also download your bin calendar to your mobile device.

There is no limit to the number of brown bins you can have, however, to have your brown bin emptied you will need to buy a garden waste permit, for each brown bin.

In addition to the garden waste permit, there is a charge applied to each additional brown bin. You can request an additional brown bin. You will also need to purchase a garden waste permit to have the additional brown bin emptied.

You can buy a garden waste permit when purchasing the additional brown bin.

You can take extra garden waste to one of our recycling centres or home compost it.

Please request an additional brown bin online or phone the Recycling Helpline on 01324 506070.

To have the additional brown bin collected you will need to buy a garden waste permit.

The brown bin will remain at the property and will not be returned to the Council as a charge will apply for any replacement bins in the future.

Brown bins put out for collection without displaying a valid permit will not be emptied.

For more information please refer to the garden waste permit Terms and conditions.

Once your payment has cleared, your brown bin will be delivered. The bin will be delivered without a garden waste permit. Garden waste permits will be posted separately.

You will need to buy a permit to have your additional brown bin emptied, this can be done at the same time as purchasing an additional brown bin. If you have already purchased a garden waste permit, you will need to provide your unique reference number on the additional brown bin order form.

Please allow 7-14 working days to receive your brown bin and permit which must be placed under the handles on the back of your brown bin. On the day of collection, the bin must be presented at the kerbside with the handles facing the road.  

Collection crews will not empty any brown bins unless they are displaying a valid permit.

Where a bin is damaged through negligence, stolen, fire damaged, vandalised or lost, you (the customer) will be liable for the cost of replacement.

If during collection your wheeled bin has been damaged by our collection crew or if it has fallen into the collection vehicle, no charge will be applied. Should either of these situations occur, our collection crews will report any damage at the point of collection, and we will arrange for the delivery of a replacement bin and garden waste permit. The replacement garden waste permit will be posted.

When ordering a replacement additional brown bin, please provide the garden waste permit reference number and we will arrange for a replacement permit to be sent out. This will be posted out and arrive separately to the replacement bin.

No. We only provide one size of brown bin. This is 240 litres in capacity.

Yes. If you take your garden waste in a plastic bag or sack, please only put the garden waste in the container. You can reuse the bag or put it in the non-recyclable waste container at the recycling centre.

Brown bins are available to flats with gardens. 

If you would like to recycle your garden waste and don’t already have a brown bin, you will need to purchase a bin and buy a permit to have it emptied.

Your brown bin material is taken to Kinneil Kerse and Roughmute Recycling Centres before it is taken to a facility in Scotland to be composted.

From 01 April 2023 a brown bin will not be collected unless it has a valid garden waste permit.

If your brown bin contains the wrong material, we will advise you by placing a sticker on the bin. It will not be uplifted. Any wrong material must be removed and placed in the correct container; the bin can then be presented again on the next scheduled collection day.

You can report a missed brown bin.

Brown bins without a valid permit will not be uplifted.

You can only request one collection every 4 weeks with the on-demand brown bin service. Households with brown bins displaying a valid garden waste permit can only request an on-demand brown bin collection. The on-demand brown bin service operates from December to March. 

Householders can recycle garden waste at their local recycling centre free of charge. 

Another way to dispose of garden waste is to compost at home. If your garden suits composting, and you would like to try, lots of information can be found on Recycle for Scotland.

It was agreed, and approval granted, at a Council executive meeting in December 2022, that an annual charge for brown bins would be introduced from April 2023.

For 2024/2025 the annual payment for the service will be £45, payable in advance and is non-refundable.

The 50% discount is limited to households on a low income with Council Tax Reduction (CTR), which is means tested.

There are a number of other discounts / relief / exemptions from Council Tax that are not means tested, including Disabled Person Reduction, and are therefore not eligible for this concession.

Residents can check if they are eligible for CTR using the benefits calculator. If they are eligible and after they have applied and been approved for CTR due to low income, they will be able to apply for a concessionary Brown Bin permit.

Residents who have purchased a brown bin permit will receive collections between April and November each year, please refer to your collection calendar.

The service moves to on-demand collections (where you submit a request to have your bin emptied) from 1st December to 31st March.

During the winter months only a small amount of garden waste is produced. To reduce carbon emissions and to achieve our goal for Net Zero, we operate an on-demand collection service during the winter months. The on-demand service operates between December and March.

You can only request one collection every 4 weeks with the on-demand brown bin service and you will be advised what day your bin will be collected.

We will only collect garden waste that is in a council issued brown bin and has a valid permit.

Please do not place extra waste at the side.

If you have a large amount of garden waste, excess can be taken to your local Household Waste Recycling Centre.

Alternatively, you can request an additional brown bin. A charge does apply, and you will also need a garden waste permit to have the brown bin emptied.

Yes. One of the residents will have to arrange to pay and register the bin which will then be collected from that address.

Residents can then sort out payment between themselves, the Council will not get involved in any arrangements or disputes neighbours may have.

Residents must report a lost, damaged, or stolen permits by phoning the Contact Centre on 01324 506070 as soon as possible, so we can arrange for a replacement permit to be issued.

To request a replacement permit you will need to provide the unique reference number located on the letter received with the original permit.

There is a charge for replacement bins.

Where a bin is damaged through negligence, stolen, fire damaged, vandalised or lost, the customer will be liable for the cost of replacement.

If during collection your wheeled bin has been damaged by our collection crew or if it has fallen into the collection vehicle, no charge will be applied. Should either of these situations occur, our collection crews will report any damage at the point of collection, and we will arrange for the delivery of a replacement bin and a replacement permit to be posted to your property.

When ordering a replacement bin, please provide the garden waste permit reference number and we will arrange for a replacement permit to be sent out.

The garden waste permit is issued to the property it was originally purchased for, is non-transferable and unfortunately no refunds can be offered if residents move. If a householder takes the bin to another property, the crews will not empty it until an active subscription has been made for the new address.

Payment must be made in advance by one of the following methods:

• Online via the MyFalkirk page by credit or debit card
• By telephone to the Contact Centre on 01324 506070 Monday – Friday. They will process your application and accept payment by credit or debit card.

We cannot accept cash payments.

Please refer to our terms and conditions for the garden waste permit.

The contract can only be cancelled within 14 days of purchase and a full refund will be given. Refunds will be issued on receipt of the returned permit to the Council.

Thereafter the contract can be cancelled at any time, but no refunds or part refunds will be payable.

Should the permit have been issued prior to the cancellation notice being received, the customer will be liable for the cost of returning the permit to the Council.

Yes, each year residents will need to buy a new garden waste permit.

We will advertise on our garden waste (brown bin) page and social media page when to renew your permit. Residents will need to reapply via MyFalkirk from 5 March 2024.

No. We will only collect garden waste presented in the council issued brown bin from properties that have paid for an annual permit and have a valid permit displayed on the bin.

Any waste presented in brown bins without a permit, in bags, or loosely at the side of the bin will not be lifted by the crew.

If residents have large amounts of garden waste each month. residents may wish to have an additional bin(s).

Householders can recycle garden waste at their local Recycling Centre free of charge.

If your bin is contaminated (containing items that should not be put in your bin), then the crew will not empty it. You will not receive another scheduled collection until you have removed the contaminating items from your bin.

Should you wish for your contaminated bin to be emptied before the next scheduled collection date, there will be a charge of £18.75 per bin. To arrange an uplift please call the Contact Centre 01324 506070.

If you receive the garden aid service, the waste will be taken away by the garden aid team.

If you have a brown bin at your property and you would like this to be emptied, you will need to buy a garden waste permit.

If you require your brown bin to be emptied as part of the assisted collection service, you will also need to purchase a garden waste permit.

Our crews will work hard to ensure that any bins presented on time will be emptied whatever the weather. However, very rarely if we have heavy snowfall, collections may be missed.

No refunds will be made.

The service disruptions page will be kept up to date.

No. Where bins are contaminated, the bin collection crew will attach a sticker to the bin which will identify that it has not been collected due to contamination/incorrect presentation.

Householders are responsible for the waste and recycling that is contained in their bins and will be required to make arrangements to remove any contamination identified. 

If all contamination is removed the bin will be collected on the next scheduled collection day.

Collection errors or other conditions beyond the Council's control can result in service disruption or missed collections. No refunds or part refunds will be given for missed collections.

Your missed bin must be reported within 24 hours of the scheduled collection. You will need your valid garden waste permit reference number to report a missed bin.

Garden waste permits must be displayed under the handles located at the back of the bin. Refer to the image on the garden waste (brown bin) page.

When requesting your new additional brown bin, the order form will ask for the unique garden waste permit reference. Once this has been confirmed you will be able to purchase your additional brown bin.