These are England’s most wasteful areas and those which recycle least

The Isles of Scilly is the most wasteful area in England, based on collected household waste and the amount sent for recycling from the council.

Middlesbrough comes second, with Stockton-on-Tees in third. Ealing and Three Rivers round out the top five. The study by eco-friendly rubbish removal company Hippowaste.co.uk analysed 2022-23 data from the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, to see which areas were most wasteful. This is based on the percentage of household waste councils send to recycling, and the household waste collected per person on average. It found that the Isles of Scilly is England’s most wasteful area. 36.3% of household waste was sent for reuse, recycling, or composting in 2022-23 by the council, and a whopping 600.6 kg of household waste was collected per person, giving it the top spot on the list. Coming in second is Middlesbrough, due to the borough council sending just 23.1% of household waste to recycling, and the average household waste collected per person being 437.6 kg. Stockton-on-Tees comes third on the list. In 2022-23 the borough council sent 25.2% of household waste to recycling, with 415.3 kg of household waste being collected per person on average. Taking fourth place on the list is Liverpool. Just 17.9% of household waste collected by the city council went to recycling in 2022-23, and the average amount of household waste collected per person was 369.6 kg. Rounding out the top five is Cornwall. In 2022-23, 34.1% of household waste collected by the council was sent for recycling, with an average of 457.1 kg collected per person. England’s most wasteful areas, based on council data

Rank Council Percentage of household waste sent for reuse, recycling, or composting (2022-23) Collected household waste per person (kg) (2022-23)

1 Council of the Isles of Scilly 36.3% 600.6

2 Middlesbrough Borough Council 23.1% 437.6

3 Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council 25.2% 415.3

4 Liverpool City Council 17.9% 369.6

5 Cornwall Council 34.1% 457.1

6 Gateshead MBC 31.7% 431.8

7 Northumberland Council 34.0% 445.0

8 Westminster City Council 24.6% 385.9

9 Merseyside WDA (MBC) 34.7% 446.5

10 Barrow-in-Furness Borough Council 18.0% 345.5

Commenting on the findings, Gareth Lloyd Jones, Managing Director of Hippowaste.co.uk said, “This research shines a spotlight on the urgent need for all of us to rethink how we handle waste and recycling in our communities. While areas like the Isles of Scilly and other areas face unique challenges due to geography and infrastructure, the figures remind us that we can all play a role in reducing waste and increasing recycling rates. It’s also interesting to see how much the average person produces in household waste every year, as this is often something that goes unnoticed when simply binning things becomes part of our daily routine.”