If you live in Birmingham, there is currently no council garden waste collection to put anything in. Birmingham City Council's paid garden waste service is suspended until further notice because of industrial action, and customers who paid for a 2025 subscription were refunded automatically. That was still the position on the council's own pages when we checked on 22 September 2026, and no restart date has been published. Your practical options in Birmingham are the household recycling centres, home composting, or paying a registered carrier to take the waste away. If you live in Solihull, Sandwell, Walsall, Dudley, Wolverhampton, Lichfield or Coventry, the normal schemes are running, and Walsall's is free.
Birmingham: what the council says
The council's garden waste collection page states that the garden waste service is suspended until further notice due to increased strike action. The subscriptions page repeats this and confirms that all customers who paid for a 2025 subscription are being refunded, with no need to contact the council. There is no sign-up route and no subscription price published. The council's industrial action FAQ says the same, and also notes that bulky waste collections are suspended.
Because this is a live dispute, check the council pages before you plan anything. We will update this guide when the position changes.
What to do with garden waste in Birmingham now
The household recycling centres. All five Birmingham sites take garden waste, and the council points residents there. They are Castle Bromwich, Kings Norton, Perry Barr, Sutton Coldfield and Tyseley. You normally need to book a slot and show proof of a Birmingham address, and van users have separate booking rules. Booking arrangements have been changing during the dispute, so read the council's booking page first. Our guide to household recycling centres across the West Midlands has the addresses.
Home composting. Grass, leaves, soft prunings and weeds that have not set seed compost well, and a compost bin takes up less room than people expect. Several West Midlands councils run subsidised compost bin offers through GetComposting; Sandwell's composting page is an example. Woody prunings and branches do not compost quickly and are better chipped or taken away.
A green waste collection. A registered waste carrier collects and loads it. Our price card puts this at about £80 for a car boot's worth up to about £330 for a full van. See green waste removal and how much garden waste fits in a van.
A clearance firm. If the garden has got away from you, cutting and clearing in one visit is usually cheaper than a dozen trips to the tip. Light clearance runs £220–£320 on our price card, moderate £380–£600 and heavy £650–£1,000, waste included. See garden clearance and the garden clearance cost guide.
A skip, if there is soil, rubble or general rubbish mixed in. Green waste alone is a poor use of a skip, because it is bulky and light.
What counts as garden waste
Councils across the region use much the same list. Garden waste means things that grew in your garden:
- grass cuttings
- hedge and shrub clippings
- tree and shrub prunings, twigs and small branches
- leaves and bark
- weeds and garden plants
- cut flowers
- windfall fruit
What is not garden waste, and will get a bin left unemptied:
- soil, turf, compost from pots, stones and rubble: heavy, and not compostable
- plant pots and trays, even the ones that look like they should go
- any bag, including carrier bags, bin liners and compostable or biodegradable liners; bins are tipped loose
- food and kitchen waste, including peelings and cooked food
- pet waste and animal bedding
- timber, sawdust, treated or painted wood, fence panels and DIY waste
- metal, glass, cardboard and paper
- ash and garden chemicals
Sandwell's garden waste page and Lichfield's garden waste page both publish full lists. Sandwell also refuses bins that are overfilled or too heavy to lift, which is worth knowing if you are tempted to compress a hedge cut into one bin.
Two things need separate handling whatever your council does. Japanese knotweed must not go in a green bin, a compost heap or an ordinary skip; see Japanese knotweed and garden clearance. Old shed roofing sheets may contain asbestos cement and are not garden waste at all; see asbestos in old sheds.
Neighbouring councils' schemes
Checked on the councils' own pages on 22 September 2026. Prices and seasons change every year, so confirm before you subscribe.
| Council | Annual charge | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Birmingham | Suspended | No service, 2025 subscriptions refunded |
| Walsall | Free | Brown bin, 36-week season, last collection early December |
| Sandwell | £40 | Frozen for 2026, up to 20 collections |
| Coventry | £40 per bin | 1 June 2026 to 31 May 2027, fortnightly |
| Lichfield | £43.50 per bin for 2027 (2026 sign-ups closed) | Around 23 fortnightly collections, no Christmas collection |
| Solihull | £49 | 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027, no part-year discount |
| Dudley | £52 | Fortnightly all year, paused two weeks at Christmas |
| Wolverhampton | £55 per bin | 23 February to 11 December 2026, same price if you join late |
Two points to watch. Most of these charges are per bin, so a garden that fills two bins costs twice as much. And Coventry has been moving food waste out of its brown-lidded bin into a separate food waste service during 2026, so check what Coventry's bin currently takes before you use it.
When a bin is not enough
A subscription bin is designed for a fortnightly trim, not a clear-out. A single hedge cut, a leylandii reduction or a spring tidy on a neglected garden will fill a brown bin several times over, and in Birmingham there is no bin to fill at the moment. If you are looking at more than a couple of bin loads, one collection or one clearance visit usually works out cheaper than a month of trips.
- Green waste removal for waste you have already cut
- Overgrown garden clearance and how to clear an overgrown garden
- Hedge trimming, at about £10 per metre with a £150 minimum on our price card
- Garden clearance cost guide
We are an introducer. We pass your enquiry to one local clearance specialist covering your area, who confirms a fixed price from your photos.
Questions
When will Birmingham's garden waste collection restart?
No date has been published. The council's pages say the service is suspended until further notice because of industrial action, and that 2025 subscribers are being refunded automatically. Check the council's garden waste page for the current position before assuming anything.
Can I still take garden waste to a Birmingham tip?
Yes. All five Birmingham household recycling centres accept garden waste, and the council points residents there while the collection service is suspended. You will normally need to book a slot and prove you live in Birmingham, and vans have separate booking rules.
Why can't I put my garden waste out in bags?
Green bins are tipped mechanically, so anything in a bag will not empty properly and contaminates the load. That applies to compostable and biodegradable liners as well as plastic ones. Councils will generally leave a bagged bin unemptied.
Can I burn garden waste instead?
It is usually a poor option. Green waste is wet and bulky, so it smoulders rather than burns, and persistent smoke that affects neighbours can be treated as a statutory nuisance by the council. Composting, the recycling centre or a registered collection are safer routes.