Garden Waste - Mid Sussex District Council

How much does it cost?

A single yearly fee of £97.50 paid in full by Direct Debit.

The payment is for 25 collections throughout the year, as there is a two-week suspension of the service over the Christmas and New Year period.

You will be given a green-lidded 240 litre garden waste bin as part of your subscription. We do recycle our bins and your garden bin may not be always new.

How does the service work?

Your garden waste will be collected every two weeks. It may be collected on a different day to your other waste. Please make sure your bin is out from 7am on collection day at the edge of your property boundary, clearly accessible and visible from the public highway.

Check our Bin Collection page for your collection dates

Any garden waste that is not in your bin will not be collected. Garden waste will not be collected for the two weeks over Christmas and New Year.

All garden waste is composted by OLUS Environmental .

Frequently asked questions

What can't I put in my garden waste bin?

Food waste

We can not accept any kitchen waste such as fruit and vegetable peelings, egg shells or food items as this is not garden waste. Regulations introduced to prevent spread of diseases such as Foot and Mouth limit the materials that can be composted in the open air and our treatment facility is not licensed to take these materials. This also includes fruit tree's or bushes grown in your garden as you can place the twigs, leaves and branches but not the flowering fruit.

Pet bedding and pet waste

Compostable packaging

Whilst some retail packaging may state compostable or biodegradable, please do not put this in your garden waste bin. This includes shredded paper and cardboard, bamboo cutlery, plant based wrapping and films. Whilst you can compost these items in your home composter, our treatment facility can not accept these types of items with garden waste as it will not efficiently break down in the open air.

Japanese Knotweed

Japanese knotweed is a large plant known for quick-growth and for causing a lot of damage. Please take a look at the Royal Horticultural Society Japanese Knotweed page.

More information on non-native plants and harmful weeds:

Ash Dieback

Ash dieback is a disease of ash trees caused by a leaf fungus spread by airborne spores and physical contact.

More information:

Forest Research information on Chalara ash dieback disease

How do I know if I'm living in an ash dieback infected area?

As well as the link above, a map showing locations is available on the DEFRA website .

I have leaves from an infected tree / I live in an area where ash dieback has been found. What do I do?

Never put leaves from an infected tree in your green-lidded garden waste bin
Leave infected leaves where they fall
Burn the leaves
Bury affected leaves in your garden or compost them. Do not move this compost outside your garden
If none of the above are possible put infected leaves in a sealed bag. Put this bag in your black-lidded rubbish bin

What can I do to help slow down the spread of ash dieback?

Do not collect dead leaf litter from anywhere other than your garden. Spores can be transmitted via infected dead leaves and this could infect new areas.

Home composting resources

Please submit an online application form using the link below.

Application Form

What happens after I submit an application?

When your application has been processed, you will receive a welcome email or letter, confirming your service start date, bin delivery and first Direct Debit payment date.

Please note, due to the high volume of applications submitted, we will endeavour to process your application as soon as possible but you may experience a wait time. All applications are added to a waiting list and processed based on the date they are submitted.

In the meantime, you can take your garden waste to any household recycling centre in West Sussex, free of charge and please book a slot ahead of time by visiting Book to Recycle booking system - West Sussex County Council . We also have further information on home composting your garden waste Home Composting - Mid Sussex District Council

No payment will be taken before your scheduled service start date. Your first payment date is the same date your subscription service starts and remains the date of your annual renewals.

I’m not a registered garden waste customer but there’s a garden waste bin at my property.

If you have recently moved into a property that has a green-lidded, Council branded wheelie bin and you haven’t joined the garden waste service, please contact a member of the garden waste team as soon as possible. We can check our registered garden waste subscription accounts but any previously registered accounts are non-transferable between residents.

Ordering additional bins

If you are already subscribed to the service, please submit an additional application form using the link below. If you don't know your garden waste account number, please ensure the contact information and address is all correct and we can locate this for you.

Additional Bins

Missed bin collections

If your collection has been missed please review the guidelines checklist on our Collections and Missed Bins page. If you have followed the guidelines and your bin was not collected please fill in our online missed bin collection form which can be found on that page.

Moving home

If you are staying within Mid Sussex and want to use the garden waste collection service at your new address, please use the online form below.

Inform us of your move

Please make sure to let us know of your change of address at least 14 days before the move date. Please can you leave your current bin(s) out in a place visible from the road, so we can remove it. This ideally should be near your usual collection point. We will then deliver a bin(s) to your new property as soon as possible.

If you are moving out of Mid Sussex please use Complete the cancellation form to avoid any future payments taken by mistake.

Cancelling the service

If you wish to cancel the service, please complete the cancellation section of our online form.

Cancel your Garden Waste subscription

lease leave your garden bin out ready for removal. Ideally we’d like you to leave the bin where your other bins are emptied from, however, if it isn’t suitable to leave it there then it must be placed in a location visible from the road and freely accessibly - i.e not behind a car. If you are unsure of where you should leave it, please ask.

Please note we will collect your bin when staff resourcing permits. No refunds will be given by MSDC in cases of cancellation before the end of the 12 month subscription period.

Update direct debit information

If you are currently a subscriber to the garden waste service, and you need to change/amend your Direct Debit details please complete the Direct Debit section of our online form.

Garden Waste Online Form

Please make sure that you update any details well in advance of any money being called for. Ideally it should be done at least four weeks before your next renewal and please state on the form should any of the contact information need to be updated.

Contact us

Online Enquiry Form

Waste Management Team
Tel: 01444-477440
Email: gardenwaste@midsussex.gov.uk

Last updated: 04 April 2025