Home Composting

Discount Compost Bin Scheme Bins available from just £8! Read more on how to buy your bin

		New! Water Butts Now Available Water Butt Kits from just £29.95 Buy one get one half price! Read more on how to buy your water butt

Working with Families in the Wyre Forest
Discount compost bin scheme
Discount Water Butt Scheme
Collect your Compost Bin from the WRE (Worcester)
What is home composting?
What are the benefits of home composting?
What are the alternatives to home composting?
What materials can I compost?
How do I make compost?
Top tips to speed up composting

Working with families in the Wyre Forest to promote home composting We offered 20 households in Wyre Forest the chance to give composting a go for free to show how easy and rewarding it is. Volunteers were given a free composting kit, which included a compost bin, kitchen caddy and instruction booklet and received help to set it up and ongoing support and advice from a volunteer 'Master Composter', trained by Worcestershire County council.

Lots of people came forward to take up the offer from singles to couples to families - and we've had very positive feedback. In June this year, Wyre Forest residents have purchased 190 compost bins compared with 69 in June last year - well done Wyre Forest for being so green!

Wyre Forest resident Barbara Cooper, above, has just started composting for the first time. She said ‘I wasn’t sure whether composting was right for me as I have quite a small garden and a small amount of kitchen waste. A Master Composter came to my house and gave me lots of helpful advice about what I can and can’t put in the composter, how to mix green and brown material and how soon I can expect compost. I didn’t realise that you could put shredded paper into the compost bin, either, which was good to know.’

You may also have seen the Recycling Team promoting Home Composting at local Children's Centres and at local events such as the Under 5's Day and Borrington Bash where seed planting, bug viewing and creepy-crawly colouring were very popular with the little ones. Right; two-year-old Ethan filling a plant pot with compost ready to plant his cress-seeds. See more photo's of events attended in 2011

Discounted compost bins available through the council!

Compost bins are now available to buy through the council at a subsidised cost;

220 litre compost bins cost just £8*

330 litre compost bins cost just £11*

Both sizes are available in black or green and, as a special offer, you can

buy one and get the second half price!

You can also purchase composting accessories, such as kitchen caddies, as well as wormeries and other types of composters plus...

New! You can now buy water butts through the council

100 litre Mini Rainsaver water butt kit costs £29.95*

190 litre Rainsaver water butt kit costs £39.95*

plus....buy one and get the second half price!

Order online or call 0844 571 4444 quoting reference number HW01L

*Delivery is just £5 per order

New! You can now collect your compost bin from the Worcestershire Resource Exchange

Let's Waste Less has teamed up with local charity Worcestershire Resource Exchange (WRE) to encourage even more residents to take up the increasingly popular art of home composting.

The new partnership will give residents the opportunity to see the 330 litre capacity compost bins at the WRE scrap store before buying one. The compost bins, which are black in colour and made of 100 per cent recycled plastic, are being sold for a bargain £11, while stocks last.

The WRE is a 'scrap store' which collects clean and safe waste from local industries and business, diverting it from landfill. This 'Aladdin's Cave' of low cost reclaimed material is then made available to members as a creative resource for projects.

If you are interested in buying a bin from the Worcestershire Resource Exchange please note that it is only open Thursday 12pm – 7pm, Fridays 10am – 5pm and Saturday 10am – 1pm. 

The full address is Unit 9A Shrub Hill Industrial Estate, Worcester, WR4 9EL.  Visit www.wre.uk.com for directions.

What is home composting?

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Garden Waste		Fruit & Veg Peelings		Time		Rich Compost

Composting is one of the easiest, most natural and oldest methods of recycling. Every garden and home has enough waste to produce rich garden compost.

Organic waste makes up around 30% of the average household bin. Every person in the UK discards an amount of organic waste equivalent to 2880 banana skins every year; this can easily be composted to make a rich organic product that can be used on your garden.

Compost can be defined as partially decomposed organic matter that comes mainly from plants. Bacteria, fungi and invertebrates break down the organic matter over time. By composting your organic waste and using it in your garden you are returning nutrients to the soil.

What are the benefits of home composting?

• Stops organic waste going to landfill and therefore reduces the amount of harmful gases and chemicals released into the atmosphere
• Reduces the need for chemical fertilisers in your garden
• Reduces the need for use of peat-based potting composts, therefore saving this habitat

What are the alternatives to home composting?

	We can collect your garden waste and compost it for you!   View our Garden Waste Collection Service Information Page

If you are unable to compost at home, there are green waste skips located at the Household Recycling Centres at Hoo Brook, Kidderminster and Minster Road, Stourport. This is sent for composting and then sold back to the public, closing the recycling loop.

Please note that we do not accept garden waste in the grey rubbish bins for disposal

What materials can I compost?

How do I make Compost?

It can take between one and two years to make rich garden compost. Factors including the amount of sunlight, the weather, the mixture of organic material and how often the compost is turned will all affect how long it will take. Composted material can be taken from the bottom of the heap allowing the partly composted and newer material to remain.

Put your compost bin in a well-drained area in the garden on bare soil where it is accessible all year round Add your organic material. You should ideally have a 50/50 mixture of green waste such as grass cuttings and brown waste such as card and twigs Turn the compost as often as possible but at least every 2 months Your compost is ready when it is dark in colour and has an earthy smell

Top tips to speed up composting

• Chop or shred tough stems or prunings
• Keep the compost moist by adding a little water if necessary. It should be as damp as a wrung-out sponge
• Keep it warm, cover it in the winter with a carpet
• Made sure you have a good mixture of material; no more than 4 inch thick layers of each type
• Young nettles are an excellent natural accelerator

For more information on composting, visit the Lets Waste Less website for Herefordshire and Worcestershire.