General household waste
Grey bin
All councils
Preston bin collection dates
- Add your dates to Google, Apple or Outlook calendar
- Get an email the evening before
- Print an A4 sheet for the fridge
Bins in Preston
These are the containers used in Preston. Which ones a home has depends on its address.
Food waste
Red lidded recycling container
Yellow lidded recycling container
Container details
The container pictures and words are Preston City Council's own. This may not be every container it uses.
Greyed-out bin icons are placeholders where the container type or colour is not confirmed.
- General household waste: Homes using an individual household refuse bin
Container descriptions checked 18 September 2026; list of collections built from Preston City Council's own service names 22 September 2026.
Order, book and apply
- Flats and shared housing recycling guidancePreston City Council
- Get rid of a bulky itemPreston City Council
- Garden waste collectionsPreston City Council
- Food waste collectionsPreston City Council
- Recycling centres and tipsPreston City Council
- Get help putting your bins outPreston City Council
Links checked 17 September 2026.
Missed bin or a problem
Tell Preston City Council first - it can only fix what it knows about.
Missed-bin guidance checked 20 September 2026.
- Report a missed binA bin that wasn't emptied on the day.
- Make a complaint to Preston City CouncilIf reporting it didn't fix it.
Complaint didn't work either? Ask your councillors
If you've already reported the problem and used the council's complaints process, your district councillors can take up a repeated problem or a wider service failure. Find and write to my district councillors on Preston City Council.
WriteToThem is an independent mySociety service. You'll enter your postcode there before choosing who to contact.
Complaint routes verified 6 September 2026.
How Preston compares
- Recycled or composted
- 27%of household waste, 2024 to 2025
- Rubbish not recycled
- 544 kgper household a year
- Cost of collections
- £52per household a year. Similar councils: £66
- Value for money
- 6 out of 10 An independently constructed WhenIsBins rating, not an official government rating.
Official figures for England, 2024 to 2025.
Local bins and recycling news
AI-generated summary, reviewed before publication. Checked 18 September 2026.
Preston councillors raised complaints about missed bins after April 2026 changes aligned household collection days and introduced weekly food-waste collections. In a July BBC report, councillor Mark Bell described the rollout as “absolutely terrible” and said residents were repeatedly reporting missed collections. The council linked some problems to delayed food-waste vehicles, with three wagons then expected in August. It said some properties might need another collection-day change as routes were adjusted. Recycling and general rubbish were intended to alternate fortnightly, while food waste was collected weekly. The council said officers were working to address the problems.
- Preston's bin collections set to change for second time — www.bbc.co.uk