Changes to council services for Christmas 2023

Hastings Borough Council offices will be closed from 3pm on Friday 22 December, until Tuesday 2 January 2024.

Waste and recycling collections will be slightly different over Christmas and the new year (see table below). Collections will return to normal from Monday 15 January 2024.

You can check your collection days anytime using our collection day lookup at www.hastings.gov.uk/waste_recycling/lookup.

Bulky waste collections are suspended from Monday 25 December and restart on Tuesday 2 January 2024. Garden waste collections are suspended from Monday 25 December and restart on Monday 8 January.

While collection dates have changed for Christmas, what can and can't be recycled has not. These are the items that can be recycled:

• Envelopes
• Wrapping paper that passes the 'scrunch' test - if the paper doesn't spring back when you scrunch it, it can be recycled
• Christmas cards - remove any glitter, ribbon, and so on, plain card can be recycled
• Food and drinks cans
• Metal lids from glass bottles and jars
• Clean kitchen foil and foil food trays
• Plastic bottles (squashed and lids put back on)
• Plastic food pots, tubs, and trays
• Glass bottles (lids off please)
• Glass jars (lids off please)
• Lids
• Batteries and small electrical items can be recycled but must not be put in the bin. Please place them in a small carrier bag on top of either your green or black bin on collection day.

Over the festive period, there will also be changes to other services. Cllr Ali Roark, lead for Environment at Hastings Borough Council, said:

"Even though our offices will be officially closed over Christmas and New Year, there will still be lots of council staff working, including those managing the out of hours service, Cemetery and Crematorium, museum, and West and East Hill lifts.

"If anyone has any issues during the office closedown that they would like to report to us, this can be done easily at My Hastings. This includes reporting missed bins, fly tips and problems with car parks. My Hastings also allows council tax and benefits accounts to be linked, so payments and details can be checked at any time."