Christmas is a wonderful time of year, full of family gatherings, presents and festive meals. But with all that joy also comes more household waste – extra packaging, food scraps, wrapping paper, cardboard boxes and often more bins than usual to fill. That sudden spike in rubbish can put a strain on local waste services and the environment if we don’t plan carefully.
At the same time, bin collection schedules change over Christmas and New Year bank holidays. With refuse crews taking time off and public holidays on 📅 25 December, 📅 26 December and 📅 1 January, many councils move their usual bin days to different dates. That means if you just put your bins out on your usual day without checking, you could miss your collection or leave bins out on the pavement long before crews arrive.
Across Derbyshire, councils have announced their Christmas and New Year collection shifts as follows:
Derby City Council
-
No bin collections at all on:
-
Thursday 25 December (Christmas Day)
-
Friday 26 December (Boxing Day)
-
Thursday 1 January (New Year’s Day)
-
-
If a bin would normally be emptied on:
-
Thursday 25 Dec → collected early on Monday 22 Dec
-
Friday 26 Dec → delayed and collected on Friday 2 Jan 2026
-
-
All regular rounds return from 6 January 2026.
Extra bags of household waste are accepted alongside the first black bin collection in January, and extra dry recycling may be left beside blue bins throughout the year. Derby City Council
South Derbyshire District Council
-
Thursday 25 Dec collections moved to Saturday 20 Dec
-
Friday 26 Dec collections moved to Saturday 27 Dec
-
Thursday 1 Jan collections moved to Saturday 3 Jan
-
You can check the full calendar online or download it by entering your postcode on the council’s website. South Derbyshire District Council+1
Derbyshire Dales District Council
-
Thursday collections (e.g., 25 Dec) brought forward to Saturday 20 Dec
-
Services for usual Monday–Wednesday remain unchanged
-
Friday rounds shift to Saturday 27 Dec
-
Garden waste collections are suspended from 29 Dec to 9 Jan
-
Food waste and recycling continue on their usual weekly or fortnightly pattern.
For Amber Valley, Erewash, High Peak, North East Derbyshire and Bolsover,
bin collection dates also shift due to the bank holidays, and while specific published schedules vary, residents are encouraged to:
-
Visit their district or borough council’s bin collection day tool online
-
Enter their postcode to see the revised dates and what goes in each bin
-
Download or print a copy of their Christmas bin calendar
-
Or contact council customer services if they cannot access online information derbyshire.gov.uk+1
What You Can Do
🎄 Check your bin day before it happens: Councils provide online tools where you can put in your postcode and see exact collection dates for rubbish, recycling and food waste over the festive period.
♻️ Plan to reduce waste: Try to recycle cardboard and paper immediately after opening gifts, compost food scraps where possible, and break down boxes so they take up less space.
🗓️ Remember altered schedules: Your bin may be collected earlier or later than usual, so look up your festive schedule and set reminders.
Even though it’s holiday time, waste crews still need to do their rounds, and they often work a different timetable around Christmas. Putting your bin out on the correct shifted day helps keep streets clear, supports recycling efforts and respects the service teams who keep our towns clean over winter.
Leave a Reply