‘Please take your recyclables home!’ campaign
On the go? Please take your recyclables home! South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse District Councils are calling on residents to change the way they deal with litter on the go.
Published: 12 August 2025
Up to 70 per cent of the things that are put in public litter bins could be recycled if taken home. Unfortunately, once recyclables are mixed with food waste and other rubbish in litter bins they can’t be recycled and must be thrown away.
This summer’s Take It Home campaign is delivering a clear message: — please take your empty bottles and cans home for recycling, instead of placing them into public litter bins.
On the go? Here’s what people need to know:
If you want to recycle, please take these items home and put them in your green bin instead:
Empty cans and bottles*
Plastic food containers*
Newspapers and magazines
*please just give it a rinse first to ensure no mess gets in your recycling bin.
What’s suitable for public litter bins:
Sandwich packaging – please ignore the label, these can be messy or include a mix of different materials which may not be recyclable
empty crisp packets and chocolate wrappers
fast food packaging
disposable coffee cups
film lids from food packaging
bagged dog waste