Colchester Christmas Bin Collections: Days Move Forward

Colchester moves most Christmas bin collections a day earlier, not later. Last year, collections due on Tuesday 23, Wednesday 24 and Thursday 25 December all went out a day early, and only the Boxing Day round was pushed back, to the following Monday. Garden waste stopped for a fortnight after Christmas.

That is the opposite of what most councils do, so if you have moved here from somewhere else, do not assume your bins will be late.

The quick answer

The 2026 Christmas dates have not been published yet. Last year Colchester City Council published them on 10 December, with a fuller release on 15 December. Garden waste was paused from 29 December to 9 January, and your own online recycling calendar showed every change before the news release did.

What happened at Christmas 2025

The council set out the changes in Are you ready for recycling and rubbish collection changes this Christmas?, published on 15 December 2025. There were no collections on Christmas Day or Boxing Day.

New Year’s week moved the other way. There were no kerbside or flats collections on New Year’s Day, so the last two rounds of the week slipped back.

Monday collections were not in either table because they did not move. The one exception was flats: bin-store rubbish collections due on Monday 22 and Monday 29 December were collected over the weekend before each. Normal collection days returned on Monday 5 January.

Why 2026 will look different

Christmas Day 2026 is a Friday and Boxing Day is a Saturday, so the bank holiday for Boxing Day falls on Monday 28 December. New Year’s Day 2027 is also a Friday. Last year’s table was built around a Thursday Christmas, so it cannot be copied across. Wait for the council’s own table, or check your calendar.

Garden waste stops for two weeks

This happens every year. In 2025 there were no brown bin collections from Monday 29 December to Friday 9 January, and the service restarted on Monday 12 January. Crews were moved onto recycling and rubbish routes to deal with the Christmas tonnage. Garden waste due on Boxing Day was still collected, on Monday 29 December.

The council says the pause is “in line with Garden Waste Collection terms and conditions”, so it is not a sign of a missed round. The subscription prices and how the brown bin service works are on our Colchester bin collection days page.

The missed bin catch

On the days that were brought forward in 2025, the missed bin service would not come back for recycling. The council’s festive notice, as republished by Marks Tey Parish Council, said that on 22, 23 and 24 December it would not collect missed paper and card, plastics, glass, tins or cans. Non-recyclable rubbish and food were still covered. If your recycling was missed, you had to take it back in until the next collection.

So on a moved day, put everything out the night before.

How to check your own days

Your personal calendar is the reliable answer. Enter your postcode on the council’s recycling calendar page. Last year the council said the calendars “show the collection changes” over Christmas, so your own calendar will be right before any news release is.

Collection days across Colchester were all reset on 1 June 2026, and wheeled bins are still being delivered in waves, so an old paper calendar on the fridge is wrong for most households.

Christmas trees and extra rubbish

In 2025, St Helena Hospice collected pre-registered real Christmas trees from postcodes CO1 to CO9 and CO11 to CO16 between 9 and 11 January, for a small donation. The council pointed residents to it in its festive services notice. The hospice has not announced the 2027 dates yet.

Anything that will not fit in your bins can go to the Shrub End recycling centre, which shuts early on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve and is closed on three bank holidays. Hours and the booking rule are on our Colchester recycling centre page.

What is still to be confirmed

We will update this page when the council publishes the 2026 table. Travel over the holiday is on our Christmas trains and buses page, and road closures are on the roadworks page.