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Outdoor recycling bins are now a standard requirement for any commercial site following the Simpler Recycling legislation that was enacted in 2025. These bins provide the general public a proper place to dispose of their waste, and without them, there is an increased risk of littering or improper waste disposal.
When installing a commercial recycling bin, you need to ensure you have the correct specification, or you may risk contamination, failed audits, or waste your budget. In this guide, we help you understand what types of commercial recycling bins are available, and which could work best for you.
What is Simpler Recycling and Why Does It Affect Outdoor Bin Specification?
As of April 2025, new regulations state that businesses with more than 10 employees must separate dry recyclables, food waste, and residual waste. This was enacted to make recycling easier and enhance the existing core recycling collections across the country.
Although councils and schools are already required to provide recycling facilities in public areas, this is now more widespread and a legal obligation. To operate under these new regulations, you need outdoor recycling bins that ensure the separation of certain materials - including food waste - from general waste.
Outdoor bins need to have appropriate signage and stream separation to guide individuals on how to dispose of their waste.
Stream Separation: How Many Compartments Do You Need?
The right recycling bin for your site depends on the type of area, and the waste streams you need to separate. There are three core configurations to consider:
Dual Recycling Bins
These bins use two compartments, which are typically used to separate general waste from mixed recycling which covers paper, card, metal, and plastic. Dual recycling bins are best utilised in lower-footfall areas, smaller building entrances, and school playgrounds.
Triple Recycling Bins
These recycling bins meet the minimum Simpler Recycling requirements needed in most areas. They have three compartments for general waste, mixed recycling, and paper and card, or glass, cans, and plastic. Triple recycling bins are the most common specification for public realm sites, council buildings, and school campuses.
Quad Recycling Bins
For maximum compartments and streams, quad recycling bins are best used to reduce contamination and support recycling rates. These quad bins include food waste and glass compartments, ensuring complete separation of materials. These bins are specified for high-footfall public spaces, hospitality venues and university campuses.
Colour Coding and Signage Standards
With any bin, appropriate signage and colour matching is often necessary to ensure proper separation of materials. Our Broxap recycling bins are finished with galvanised steel in BS/RAL colour matching to follow the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) colour coding system.
Certain colours are used for recycling, for example: blue is for paper or cardboard, green is for glass, yellow for cans and metals, and red for plastic. Consistent colour coding across a site ensures proper separation and improves recycling rates.
Capacity Planning
Choosing the appropriate size for your commercial recycling bin will depend on the area you need it for. For example, a school with over 500 pupils will need a larger capacity compared to a council office with 50 staff.
Outdoor recycling bins normally range between 60 litres to 240 litres per compartment. Areas with high-footfall will require larger capacity and more emptying, whereas lower traffic settings can use smaller units. You can calculate the correct size and volume by conducting a waste audit, where you can determine the average daily volume of waste collected, and how much waste is generated per person.
Our Broxap recycling bins offer capacity up to 400+ litres, ranging from smaller units to recycling centres, depending on the needs of your area.
Materials, Fixing and Installation
At Broxap, we manufacture and design our commercial recycling bins with galvanised steel, finished with powder coating, BS/RAL colour matching, and a variety of ground-fixing options.
Galvanised steel construction combined with powder coating offers weather resistance, and ensures longevity. In combination with a 12-year anti-perforation warranty, you have an outdoor recycling bin that can blend well with existing street furniture and promote improved recycling rates.
We offer a supply-and-install service, where our expert team can install the bins according to local planning permissions and create a seamless experience. Whether you need a bolt-down or free-standing bin, our team can adjust to your requirements.
Broxap has been designing and installing street furniture since 1946, and manufactures commercial recycling bins from our base in Staffordshire. We provide bins with a long lifespan that help you adhere to local and country-wide regulations, enhancing existing recycling guidelines, and reducing the incorrect disposal of general waste.
View the full range of outdoor recycling bins today, or contact our team to discuss stream configuration, colour matching and installation for your site.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Simpler Recycling, and when does it start?
The Simpler Recycling regulations state that businesses with more than 10 employees must separate recyclables, residual waste, and general waste for collection. The first phase took effect in April 2025 for larger businesses, and in April 2027, businesses with fewer than 10 employees will have to be compliant. Failing to follow these regulations may result in fines from your local waste authority.
How many streams do outdoor recycling bins need?
The number of streams or compartments will depend on the site the bin is being installed on. You can have up to four streams for general waste, mixed recycling, paper and card or glass, and food waste. Most council and school sites will need a minimum of three streams to comply with Simpler Recycling requirements.
What colour coding should outdoor recycling bins use?
The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) colour coding system is the UK standard for any outdoor recycling bin. Blue for paper and card, green for glass, yellow for cans and metals, and red for plastics. With appropriate signage and colour coding, you can reduce contamination and ensure consistent recycling rates. We offer BS/RAL colour-matching for all our bins to ensure your bins remain WRAP-compliant.
What size outdoor recycling bin do I need?
Most outdoor recycling bins range from 60 litres to 240 litres per compartment, but we offer bins up to 400+ litres if necessary. To understand what capacity you need, you should conduct a waste audit to measure current volumes by stream over two weeks, then add 20% above those figures to account for peak periods and seasonal variation.