Maidenhead & Windsor

'Give some goodwill to the environment this festive season' - this is the message from Royal Windsor and Maidenhead Borough waste officers who are encouraging residents to be sparing in how much rubbish they 'give' to landfill.

Cllr Colin Rayner, lead member for Windsor and Maidenhead highways, transport and environment, said: "In the UK, we create around three million tonnes of waste over the festive period, which amounts to a staggering 50kg each. So we’re urging residents to have a green Christmas and reduce the amount of rubbish they generate.

"Every time you buy a Christmas present, think green! We need to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill sites. Why not buy a tree to plant? This will produce oxygen when it grows and absorb carbon dioxide."

Here's how Windsor and Maidenhead residents can make a difference before Christmas:

* buy recycled presents which are made from recycled goods. Try www.recyclenow.com/shopping for inspiration
* consider buying a present which will last the whole year, such as sponsoring an animal, or a 'gift experience' such as theatre tickets or days out
* use rechargeable batteries for any toys or gifts which need them
* decorate the house with holly, twigs, leaves and berries which have fallen off trees and bushes – although always ask the landowner for permission
* re-use shopping bags, rather than getting new ones.

After Christmas, continue the 'green' theme and:

* ensure you recycle wrapping paper, plastic and cardboard packaging wherever possible
* recycle jars and containers for items like cranberry sauce and pickle
* don't buy too much or use overly-packaged food – make a list and stick to what you need
* put vegetable peelings on the compost pile for next year's gardening
* recycle Christmas cards by taking them to a Tesco (not Express), a high street branch of WHSmith or TK Maxx or re-use any part of them for labels for next year. Alternatively, put them in your black recycling boxes to be collected by the council
* if you have a real tree, ensure you recycle it at one of the borough's 23 tree recycling sites (see below for details).

Residents can recycle their real Christmas trees by taking them to one of 23 collection points around the borough, which are open from Friday January 4 to Friday January 18. They are:

ASCOT The Grange car park, High Street and Gainsborough Drive
BRAY The Car Park, High Street, Bray
DATCHET Recreation Ground, Green Lane
ETON Car park, Meadow Lane
ETON WICK Recreation ground car park, Haywards Mead
HOLYPORT Youth club next to Memorial Hall, Moneyrow Green
HURLEY Car park, High Street
KNOWL HILL Village Hall off Bath Road
MAIDENHEAD Braywick Civic Amenity Site, Stafferton Way
Ockwells Park, Ockwells Road
Boulter’s Lock car park, Ray Mead Road
OLD WINDSOR Church Road allotments
Recreation Ground, Robin Willis Way
SOUTH ASCOT Recreation Ground car park, Victoria Road
SUNNINGDALE Broomhall Recreation Ground, Broomhall Lane
SUNNINGHILL Victory Fields Recreation Ground, London Road
WINDSOR Clewer Memorial Recreation Ground, Dedworth Road
Foster Avenue open space.

GARDEN CENTRES
Wyevale Country Garden, Dedworth Road, Windsor
World of Water, Wraysbury Road, Wraysbury, Staines
Squires, Maidenhead Road, Windsor
Stubbings Nursery, Henley Road, Maidenhead.

Christmas refuse and recycling collection holiday schedule:

NORMAL COLLECTION DAY - REVISED COLLECTION DAY
Monday December 24 - No change
Tuesday December 25 - Thursday December 27
Wednesday December 26 - Friday December 28
Thursday December 27 - Saturday December 29
Friday December 28 - Monday December 31
Monday December 31 - Wednesday January 2
Tuesday January 1 - Thursday January 3
Wednesday January 2 - Friday January 4
Thursday January 3 - Saturday January 5
Friday January 4 - Monday January 7
Monday January 7 - Tuesday January 8
Tuesday January 8 - Wednesday January 9
Wednesday January 9 - Thursday January 10
Thursday January 10 - Friday January 11
Friday January 11 - Saturday January 12

Normal collection resumes from Monday January 14

Cllr Rayner added: "Everyone at the council would like to wish all our residents a very happy Christmas and New Year – and a very green festive season.

"After the festivities, please recycle all your recyclables at the centres. We all need to help protect the planet."

For further information, see Recycling at Christmas, or call the council’s customer service centre on 01628 683800.

The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead