About the service

We introduced our garden waste service in April 2017. This meant households had to subscribe to the service if they wanted their brown bin emptying.

We are now offering subscriptions for 2023/24. This runs from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024.

Cost (2023/24 subscription year)

You can now subscribe to the 2023/24 service (1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024) by Direct Debit for £39. This offers a saving of 17% off the standard price. 

If you already have a valid direct debit in place, you don't need to re-subscribe. All future annual direct debits will be collected on February 1st. This date may not be shown on your current direct debit mandate. If you have bought a new bin this is a one-off payment and you will not be charged for it again next year. 

From 3 January 2023, you will be able to pay by Debit Card or Cash (via Paypoint) for £47. 

After you've subscribed

We will send you a confirmation letter and unique sticker after we have received your payment.

Please allow 10 working days for subscription stickers to be delivered and for the service to commence

The sticker needs to be put on the rear of your brown bin. If you subscribe to more than one bin you will receive a sticker for each. 

Please place your bin out before 7am on collection day. The handle needs to face the road and the subscription sticker must be clearly visible. 

Your garden waste will be collected once a fortnight, all year round. Collection days may change due to bank holidays and Christmas. 

What goes in your bin

Our brown bin service is for garden waste. This includes:

• weeds
• hedge trimmings
• small twigs and branches (less than 2.5cm or 1" in diameter)
• grass cuttings
• flowers and plants
• leaves
• fruit and vegetable waste

Garden waste must be put into the bin loose, without bags. It must all fit in the bin with the lid closed. Any waste left outside your bin won't be collected (apart from real Christmas trees in season).

Bins containing plastic, textiles, soil, general waste or rubble will not be emptied. 

Cold weather

The contents of your garden waste bin are more likely to freeze than your other bins. To prevent this you could:

• use a spade to loosen any garden waste on the morning of collection;
• make sure you do not overfill your bin and compact the garden waste, this leads to a greater chance of it freezing;
• consider leaving your garden waste bin in a warmer place such as in direct sunlight, in a shed or in a garage.

If we are unable to empty your bin because it is frozen shut or frozen solid we will not return to empty it until the next scheduled collection day.

If you don't want the service

You do not have to subscribe to the service if you do not want your brown bin to be emptied. There are other ways to dispose of your garden waste. If you have a small garden, you could consider sharing a bin with your neighbour. One household must be responsible for the subscription and the bin. 

Discounts, exemptions and refunds

There are no discounts or exemptions, even if you sign up part way through the year. 

We cannot offer a discount or refund if you decide not to use the service for a while. 

Moving house

If you are moving house in Fenland you can transfer your subscription to your new property. We cannot give discounts or refunds if you are moving out of area.

Direct Debit customers

Your subscription will be renewed automatically each year if you are a Direct Debit customer. 

All future direct debits will be collected on February 1st. This date may not be shown on your current direct debit mandate.

If there are any changes to the amount, frequency or date of your Direct Debit payment, we will notify you 10 working days in advance of your account being debited. This is as part of your Direct Debit guarantee.

If you want to cancel your direct debit you need to tell us in writing and contact your bank. 

Lost, stolen or damaged bins

You are responsible for the security of your bin. We cannot empty the bin if it is moved to another property. We also cannot replace lost or stolen bins free of charge. 

If our collection crew record they have damaged your bin, we will repair or replace it free of charge. If they are not responsible you will need to pay the usual delivery change of £30 for it to be replaced. 

If you don't have a brown bin

You can still sign up for the service. Once you've subscribed, we'll arrange for the delivery of a brown bin. The delivery charge for this is £30.

You cannot buy your own bin instead of a Fenland District Council one. We are unable to service bins that don't meet our specification. 

A small number of customers will be offered the service using paper sacks, rather than bins. This is because our refuse vehicles cannot access their property or they haven't got a suitable storage area for the bin. We will contact you directly if this applies to your property.

Why we charge

Due to Government funding reductions, we introduced a charge from 2017/18 to cover the cost of our garden waste collection service. This meant that customers that use the service fund the cost.

No profit is made from the service. More than 20,000 customers subscribed this year which has covered the cost of the year's service. The charge in future years will be advertised in advance. The amount will depend on costs and the number of people that subscribe to the service.