BANK HOLIDAY BIN ALERT: Havant Collections Stay Normal as Food Waste Pilot Faces Long-Weekend Test

Havant households are being told not to panic over the next bank holiday bin day — because the council says collections will stay on the usual schedule across the borough.

That means the Spring bank holiday on Monday 25 May should not trigger the familiar doorstep guessing game of “is it today, tomorrow or next week?” for rubbish, recycling, garden waste or the new food waste pilot.

Havant Borough Council has confirmed that bins across the borough will continue to be collected as normal during both May bank holidays. The first, on Monday 4 May, has already passed. The second — the Spring bank holiday on Monday 25 May — is the one residents now need to have circled on the kitchen calendar.

In short: if Monday is your normal collection day, put the bin out. If another day is your normal collection day, stick with that too. The council says crews start at 7am, so residents are being urged to make sure containers are out and ready early to avoid a missed collection.

## NO BANK HOLIDAY BIN SHUFFLE

Bank holidays often bring changes to council services, and bin collections are one of the first things residents worry about. A shifted round can leave streets cluttered with wheelie bins, recycling boxes and garden waste sacks for days if people miss the update.

But Havant’s May message is simple: no shuffle, no delay, no one-day-later confusion.

The council’s update says rubbish, recycling and garden waste collections will remain the same. It also makes clear that households taking part in the food waste pilot should continue as normal too.

That last detail matters because 2026 is already a changing year for waste in Havant. Thousands of selected homes have been getting used to new food caddies as part of a phased pilot. For those residents, the bank holiday could have been another layer of uncertainty. Instead, the instruction is to keep the new routine going.

## FOOD CADDIES STAY IN THE ROUTINE

The food waste pilot is still bedding in across parts of the borough, with selected households given a small kitchen caddy and a larger outdoor caddy for weekly collection.

The scheme is designed to separate food scraps from ordinary rubbish, including plate scrapings, peelings, tea bags, coffee grounds, leftovers, bread, dairy, meat, bones, fish, rice, pasta and fruit skins. Packaging and ordinary rubbish should not go in.

For households in the pilot, the council says food waste collections will remain the same over the May bank holidays. That means the little caddy does not get a holiday either.

This may sound like a small operational note, but it is exactly the kind of detail that makes or breaks a new recycling habit. If the first few weeks of a scheme are confusing, people can quickly give up or use the wrong bin. Keeping the day predictable gives the pilot a better chance of becoming part of normal household life.

## WHAT RESIDENTS SHOULD DO

The practical advice is straightforward.

Put bins, recycling and caddies out by 7am on the usual collection day. Make sure the right container is out. Keep food waste caddies closed. Do not overload bins. And if you are unsure, use the council’s waste collection portal to check scheduled collections, delays and changes.

That portal matters because “normal” still depends on your address. Havant borough covers different communities with different rounds — from Havant and Leigh Park to Emsworth, Bedhampton, Hayling Island, Purbrook, Cowplain and Waterlooville. A bank holiday update may say collections are unchanged, but residents still need to know what their ordinary day actually is.

The other key point is timing. Crews starting at 7am means a bin put out after breakfast can already be too late. On a bank holiday Monday, when people may be sleeping in, going away or expecting a slower start, that early deadline is worth taking seriously.

## WHY THIS IS MORE THAN BIN CHAT

It is easy to laugh at bin-day confusion — until a missed collection leaves rubbish sitting around for another fortnight or garden waste waiting through warm weather.

For families, older residents, shift workers and people without much outside space, reliable collections are not a trivial service. They affect cleanliness, pests, smells, parking, pavements and how tidy a street feels.

That is why clear communication from the council matters. A simple statement that collections are unchanged can prevent hundreds of unnecessary calls, complaints and missed bins. It also reduces the “someone said on Facebook” problem that often spreads faster than official updates.

Havant is also in the middle of a bigger waste-service year. Alongside normal rubbish and recycling, the food waste pilot is part of a national shift towards separating more household waste and recycling it more consistently. The Government’s wider Simpler Recycling agenda is pushing councils towards more standardised collection systems, and food waste is a major target because it makes up a heavy, messy share of ordinary rubbish.

For residents, though, the national policy matters less than the weekly reality: what goes out, when it goes out, and whether it gets collected.

## THE BANK HOLIDAY TEST

The Spring bank holiday is a useful test of whether Havant’s waste messaging is cutting through.

If residents know collections are normal, the streets should look like any other Monday round. If they do not, the borough could see the familiar mess of bins left out too early, too late or on the wrong day.

Food waste adds another test. The pilot asks households to change behaviour inside the kitchen before anything even reaches the kerb. That takes repetition. One missed or confusing week can slow progress, especially for people still getting used to what can and cannot go into the caddy.

So the bank holiday instruction is not glamorous, but it is important: keep going as normal.

## CHECK BEFORE YOU CHANCE IT

Anyone unsure about their collection should check the council’s customer portal rather than guessing. Residents can use it to see scheduled waste collections, delays and changes.

The official GOV.UK bank holidays page confirms that the next bank holiday in England and Wales is Monday 25 May, the Spring bank holiday. Havant Council’s own update says collections remain unchanged for that date.

So the headline for Havant households is refreshingly simple: enjoy the long weekend, but do not give your bin the day off.

Put it out on the usual day, do it before 7am, and if your home is in the food waste pilot, keep the caddy routine running too.