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London Carnaby Street bin at Christmastime
Photograph: rightclickstudios / Shutterstock.com

The London Christmas bin collection changes you need to know about

How to avoid your bins getting too full this festive season

Ed Cunningham
Written by
Ed Cunningham
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Christmas is under a week away! Yep, under a week. And you know what that means: family, presents, general wholesomeness and... remembering any changes to the bin timetable. 

This time of year is full of celebration, but the festivities come with some less glamorous changes too. Like bus and transport timetable tweaks, for instance. And as this year Christmas, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day all fall on Mondays and Tuesdays (ie normal bin days), so there’s quite a bit of shake-up to usual rubbish collection schedules. 

Fortunately, we’ve rounded-up all the changes to bin collections in London over the next couple of weeks, with the lowdown for each borough. To avoid you having your bins overflowing this Crimbo, here’s everything you need to know about rubbish collections in the capital. 

Barking and Dagenham, Bromley, Croydon, Ealing, Havering, Kingston, Merton, Newham, Redbridge, Sutton, Waltham Forest 

Christmas Day collections move to December 27

Boxing Day collections move to December 28

December 27 collections move to December 29

December 28 collections move to December 30

December 29 collections move to January 2

New Year’s Day collections move to January 3

January 2 collections move to January 4

January 3 collections move to January 5

January 4 collections move to January 6

January 5 collections move to January 8

January 8 collections move to January 9

January 9 collections move to January 10

January 10 collections move to January 11

January 11 collections move to January 12

January 12 collections move to January 13

Bexley, Camden, Enfield, Greenwich, Hackney, Haringey, Lewisham, Richmond, Southwark

Christmas Day collections move to December 27

Boxing Day collections move to December 28

December 27 collections move to December 29

December 28 collections move to December 30

December 29 collections move to December 31

New Year’s Day collections move to January 2

January 2 collections move to January 3

January 3 collections move to January 4

January 4 collections move to January 5

January 5 collections move to January 6 

Barnet, Hillingdon, Hounslow 

Christmas Day collections move to December 23

Boxing Day collections move to December 27

December 27 collections move to December 28

December 28 collections move to December 29

December 29 collections move to December 30

New Year’s Day collections move to January 2

January 2 collections move to January 3

January 3 collections move to January 4

January 4 collections move to January 5

January 5 collections move to January 6 

Lambeth, Tower Hamlets, Wandsworth 

Christmas Day collections move to Boxing Day

Boxing Day collections move to December 27

December 27 collections move to December 28

December 28 collections move to December 29

December 29 collections move to December 30

New Year’s Day collections move to January 2

January 2 collections move to January 3

January 3 collections move to January 4

January 4 collections move to January 5

January 5 collections move to January 6 

Brent, Islington

From December 25 to December 29 and from January 1 to January 5, collections will take place one day after normal collection days. 

City of London

No collections on December 24, 25, 26 and January 1. Normal collections from January 2.

Harrow

Harrow’s bin service changes depend on the day you usually get your bin collected, not the date. 

  • Monday collection days will be moved to December 27 and January 2
  • Tuesday collection days will move to December 27 and 28, and January 2 and 3
  • Wednesday collection days will move to December 28 and 29, and January 3 and 4
  • Thursday collection days will move to December 29 and 30, and January 4 and 5
  • Friday collection days will move to December 30 and January 6 

Kensington and Chelsea

Christmas Day collections move to December 28

Boxing Day collections move to December 29

New Year’s Day collections move to January 4 

Westminster 

Christmas Day collections move to December 27

New Year’s Day collections move to January 3

For up-to-date info, check your local council website.

Did you see that these are the London areas with the most burglaries at Christmas?

Plus: the International Space Station is set to fly over London on Christmas morning.

Listen to Time Out’s brilliant podcast ‘Love Thy Neighbourhood’: the Christmas special with Paloma Faith in the East End is out now.

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