With global waste output increasing rapidly, contributing to pollution and climate change, it’s more important than ever for cities to take the reins and mitigate waste production. But which cities are producing the most and least waste in the country?
To find out, Idealo has analysed cities and towns in England, looking at the amount of waste collected in each area, the percentage of this waste that is recycled, and the amount of fly tipping incidents in each area.
The full research can be viewed here: https://www.idealo.co.uk/magazine/lifestyle-leisure/the-most-and-least-wasteful-cities-and-towns-in-england
Reading is crowned the least wasteful place in England outside of London, with a 42% decrease in waste over the past six years
With a 42.1% decrease in the amount of waste produced over the past six years, Reading leads the way as the least wasteful location in England.
The amount of waste being reused, recycled or composted in Reading has also risen by 60.4% in the last six years. The town recycled over half of its waste (51.5%) between 2021 and 2022, helping to conserve natural resources, and limit greenhouse gases released when manufacturing raw products.
Ranked second is Stroud, with the lowest amount of household waste collected in the top 10, at 1,774 kg per household over the last six years. This marks a significant 21% decrease in the total amount of waste collected.
In third is St Albans, boasting the highest recycling output in England with a fantastic 62.4% of waste recycled, reused or composted. Colchester and Wokingham round out the top five.
| Rank | Local Authority | Total Collected waste (kg / household) over the last 6 years | % increase in waste (KG) over the last 6 years | % of waste sent for reuse, recycling or composting 2021-22 (latest available) | % change over 6 years in waste sent for reuse, recycling or composting | Fly tipping incidents per 1,000 people |
| 1 | Reading | 3,171 | -42.1% | 51.5% | 60.4% | 8 |
| 2 | Stroud | 1,774 | -21.0% | 58.2% | 27.9% | 7 |
| 3 | St Albans | 1,996 | -12.9% | 62.4% | 8.5% | 4 |
| 4 | Colchester | 1,946 | -18.0% | 54.8% | 19.7% | 13 |
| 5 | Wokingham | 3,456 | -34.9% | 54.2% | 39.3% | 9 |
| 6 | Bath | 2,347 | -19.3% | 59.2% | 9.4% | 11 |
| 7 | Horsham | 2,542 | -20.9% | 53.1% | 19.3% | 8 |
| 8 | Stockport | 1,986 | -6.0% | 60.3% | 2.2% | 10 |
| 9 | Watford | 2,654 | -21.4% | 51.7% | 20.5% | 11 |
| 10 | Wigan | 2,812 | -19.4% | 53.0% | 21.3% | 7 |
Barrow-in-Furness ranks as the most wasteful town in England, excluding London, recycling just 17.7% of its waste
Barrow-in-Furness is the most wasteful English location outside of London. Only 17.7% of waste here is recycled, reused or composted, which is the lowest figure in the country. The amount of waste recycled has also fallen over the last six years by a shocking 39.6%.
Additionally, households in the town each accumulated 3,574 kg of waste in six years, which is over 1,800 kg more than Stroud.
Coming second is Liverpool, with one of the highest increases in waste over the past six years at 10.6%. The city also only recycles 22.9% of its waste – an amount that has decreased by 18.5% over the last six years.
Nottingham comes third. Households here produced an average of 3,619 kg of waste over six years, which is even more than Barrow-in-Furness. The city is also the worst in the country for fly-tipping outside of London, with 65 incidents recorded per 1,000 people.
| Rank | Local Authority | Total Collected waste (kg / household) over the last 6 years | % increase in waste (KG) over the last 6 years | % of waste sent for reuse, recycling or composting 2021-22 (latest available) | % change over 6 years in waste sent for reuse, recycling or composting | Fly tipping incidents per 1,000 people |
| 1 | Barrow-in-Furness | 3,574 | 8.4% | 17.7% | -39.6% | 18 |
| 2 | Liverpool | 3,583 | 10.6% | 22.9% | -18.5% | 47 |
| 3 | Nottingham | 3,619 | 4.6% | 25.3% | -15.1% | 65 |
| 4 | Middlesbrough | 4,030 | 10.7% | 29.8% | -11.6% | 17 |
| 5 | Stockton-on-Tees | 4,382 | 2.6% | 25.7% | -0.4% | 9 |
| 6 | Birmingham | 4.261 | -4.8% | 22.8% | -6.6% | 14 |
| 7 | Luton | 3,939 | -1.5% | 28.6% | -15.4% | 41 |
| 8 | Walsall | 3,597 | 15.0% | 33.6% | -18.6% | 14 |
| 9 | Dartford | 3,793 | 3.4% | 24.3% | -3.6% | 17 |
| 10 | Gateshead | 3,793 | 6.6% | 31.7% | -7.3% | 25 |
Nottingham the worst location for fly-tipping outside of London, with 65 incidents per 1,000 people in the past six years
Looking at the locations with the most fly-tipping incidents in the past six years outside of London, Nottingham comes out on top with a whopping 65 incidents per 1,000 residents.
Liverpool comes in second with 47 cases per 1,000 residents, whilst Peterborough comes in third with 46.
However, these numbers are considerably low compared to London where the City of London (276), Westminster (145) and Camden (144) make up the top fly-tipping hotspots.
| Rank | Local Authority | Fly tipping incidents per 1,000 people over last 6 years |
| 1 | Nottingham | 65 |
| 2 | Liverpool | 47 |
| 3 | Peterborough | 46 |
| 4 | Newcastle-upon-Tyne | 45 |
| 5 | Boston | 45 |
Katy Phillips, Senior Brand & Communications Manager from Idealo, says: “Having an organic waste bin, a recycling bin and a general bin is one of the simplest, but often overlooked, methods to be more mindful of waste.
“Another option is to get your own compost bin to put outside. Here you can put things like fruit and vegetable scraps, plants, eggshells, paper and cardboard, which will break down over time into soil.
“Another way to more sustainably deal with household waste is to cut down waste at the source, buying fewer single-use items.”
