Richmond upon Thames Council is launching a new initiative to tackle waste and improve recycling rates across the borough, aiming to foster a low waste future.
The comprehensive Roadmap to a Low Waste Future,
discussed at the Environment, Sustainability, Culture and Sports Committee meeting on Tuesday, March 24, 2026, outlines key proposals including a new recycling and food waste service for flats above shops (FLASH), trials for collecting soft plastics, and enhanced communication campaigns.
Natasha Epstein, Director of Waste and Street Cleansing, presented the roadmap, highlighting the need to address challenging properties like flats above shops, which currently have inconsistent recycling services and contribute to litter on high streets. The new FLASH service will offer bespoke solutions depending on property access, including food waste collection. This service is proposed for delivery in 2026/27, aiming to provide a separate weekly food waste collection for approximately 2,000 households in these properties.
Trials for soft plastic collection are also planned, exploring different methods of presentation to residents, such as loose in recycling streams, in residents' own bags, or in council-provided bags. These trials are crucial to meet the legislative requirement to provide a flexible plastic collection service by April 2027. Potential challenges include the environmental and financial impact of single-use bags, the risk of litter, and sorting difficulties. The council will assess participation, satisfaction, and impact on streets to determine the most effective method.
The council is also looking to increase awareness of textile and electrical item recycling, as well as promoting reuse schemes and repair cafes. Textiles, electrical items, batteries, and vapes are identified as harder-to-target materials for enhanced recycling awareness. Currently, about 8% of textiles end up in residual waste. The report emphasizes the importance of recycling electrical items due to precious metals and the fire risk associated with batteries and vapes.
To tackle the significant proportion of food waste still ending up in residual waste, the council plans targeted communication campaigns. This includes supporting the London-wide Eat Like a Londoner
initiative, which aims to amplify the council's own efforts with the principle of don't waste food. Eat Like a Londoner. Save your money, don't waste food, you know, cook, make healthy meals.
The promotion of home composting and the potential for a reusable nappy lending service are also being explored.
To support these efforts, the recruitment of a dedicated education team for door-knocking and community engagement is proposed at an estimated cost of £115,000 for 2026/27. An additional waste enforcement officer will focus on reducing fly-tipping, with an estimated cost of £70,000 for 2026/27. The effectiveness of the education team will be evaluated through their work in targeted communications, while the enforcement officer's impact will be measured by reductions in fly-tipping.
These initiatives are expected to be funded through existing budgets, including the council's waste reserve and Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) funding. The council has received £1.865 million from PACKUK for the current financial year to compensate for packaging waste costs, which is proposed to support these projects. The EPR scheme is also anticipated to reduce non-recyclable packaging in the long term.
The Roadmap to a Low Waste Future
aims to reduce overall waste arisings and increase diversion to recycling. While specific target recycling rates are not explicitly stated, the Low Waste Future Working Group
considered data on waste per household and per capita, as well as the impact of demographics and packaging waste. Success will be measured by the impact on waste reduction and diversion to recycling, with a recognition that all waste streams and behavioural changes need to be considered.
The Environment, Sustainability, Culture and Sports Committee meeting agenda and public reports pack can be found at Agenda frontsheet Tuesday 24-Mar-2026 19.00 Environment Sustainability Culture and Sports Comm.pdf and Public reports pack Tuesday 24-Mar-2026 19.00 Environment Sustainability Culture and Sports Co.pdf respectively. The full roadmap document is available at Roadmap to a low waste future.pdf.
