Recycle Week returns this week, 14 - 20 September, bringing people and organisations across the UK together to celebrate recycling and encourage everyone to recycle more of the right things, more often.
This year’s campaign continues the theme “Rescue Me, Recycle!”, highlighting commonly discarded items that could have been recycled and showing what they can become when their materials are kept in circulation.
The central message is simple: our recycling efforts are worthwhile. Recycling materials uses considerably less energy than producing them from raw materials, reduces greenhouse gas emissions and helps valuable resources remain in use for longer.
Make one change this Recycle Week
This Recycle Week, we are asking everyone in our University community to take one simple action:
- Check the label before choosing a bin.
- Before disposal, identify recyclable items and place them in the correct recycling bin.
- Carry and refill a reusable cup or bottle.
- Reuse, repair or share an item instead of replacing it.
- Separate food from its packaging and place it in a food waste caddy or bin. If the packaging can be recycled, empty it and place it clean, dry and loose in the correct recycling bin.
Small actions, repeated across a community of more than 30,000 staff and students, can make a significant difference.
Find out more about the national campaign on the Recycle Now website, or visit the University’s sustainability webpages for guidance on recycling across our campuses.
Rescue your recyclables, choose the right bin and help us keep valuable resources in circulation.
Recycling at the University of Liverpool
At the University, we are working to prevent waste, increase reuse and make recycling simpler and more consistent across our campuses.
Our recently launched Waste and Resources Management Plan sets out how we will reduce waste, maximise reuse, repair and resale, improve recycling and support the transition towards a circular economy.
During 2024/25, the University managed more than 2,160 tonnes of operational and construction waste. Approximately 47% was recycled, with further material treated through anaerobic digestion and composting.
The new plan builds on significant progress already made. Since the launch of the previous Waste Management Plan, the University has achieved a 48% reduction in general waste sent for incineration with energy recovery.
New recycling bins across campus
It’s never been easier to recycle, with new trio recycling bins installed across the University’s external spaces.
The bins provide separate sections for mixed recycling, food waste and general waste, replacing many of the single general-waste bins previously located around campus. Separating these materials at the point of disposal allows more resources to be recycled and helps prevent contamination.
When using the bins, please follow the signage and place items in the correct section.
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Recycling is important, but prevention and reuse are even better
Recycling helps retain the value of materials, but it is only one part of the solution. Preventing waste in the first place and keeping products in use for longer can deliver even greater environmental and financial benefits.
Before disposing of something, consider whether it could be avoided, reused, repaired, donated or shared. University staff can also use Warp It to make unwanted furniture and equipment available to colleagues rather than purchasing new items or disposing of usable resources.
Think you know how to sort it right?
Follow this link or scan the QR code below to take our Recycle Week quiz and enter the prize draw for a chance to win a £20 University catering voucher. A Loyalty Plus account is required to receive the prize.
