Hackney Council is trialling a new style of communal bin to make it easier for residents in blocks of flats and estates to recycle.

40 new bins have been put out across several estates and have larger apertures to make it easier to put carrier bags of mixed recycling inside. The lids are reversed and locked shut, to stop people contaminating the recycling with black sacks of rubbish or bulky waste, and are the first of their kind in the world.

27% of Hackney’s waste is recycled - an increase on recent years as more and more residents are recycling what they can. The aim of these new bins is to make recycling even easier for people living in flats, so the Council will be checking how people use these bins to see if recycling increases and if the amount of rubbish that ends up in the recycling goes down. If the trial is a success, the bins will be rolled out across more estates and blocks of flats.

• Find out what you can recycle
• Order recycling bags