Embargoed until 9am Tuesday 3rd December
Press release 2019
L E E D S – Y O U ’ V E B I N G R E AT ! • On-the-go recycling trial #LeedsbyExample reveals 12-month results • Lessons from Leeds being used to ensure success of new schemes across the country
Over 1.2 million coffee cups, 140,000 cans and 160,000 plastic bottles were recycled across Leeds City Centre over the last year thanks to Leeds By Example, the UK’s biggest collaborative drive to boost recycling of some of the most common food and drink packaging consumed ‘on-the-go’. The pioneering pilot launched in October 2018 by Hubbub and Ecosurety, introduced 186 new recycling points and new technology in the square mile of Leeds City Centre. The aim was to test the impact of different bin designs, bin locations and communications over the course of a year. The #LeedsByExample 12-month report launched today can be viewed here: www.hubbub.org.uk/leeds-by-example. Key findings include:
• Of the 1.2 million coffee cups recycled over the year, 117,000 were from on-street bins, over 469,000 from managed locations such as workplaces and universities and over 608,000 from retailers.
• The number of people recycling in Leeds City Centre nearly tripled from 17% to 49% over the course of the year.
• The number of people recycling their coffee cup almost quadrupled, from 14% to 53% by the end of the trial.
• A major challenge the campaign sought to address was to reduce the levels of
contamination, as stray materials like food and drink in bins can lead to recyclable items not being able to be recycled. Clear messages such as “Empty plastic and cans, nowt else”, plus consistent colours and icons have helped achieve a steady reduction in contamination rates over the course of the trial, with an average contamination rate by volume of 25% and contamination levels significantly below the national average1.
• The report also shows that the quality of recycling reduces during holiday or leisure periods
when footfall rises, with more people who are not ‘regulars’ in the city centre. The night-time economy also has an impact.
• Simply changing the messaging and colour of the bin has a significant impact on the amount of recycling collected.