Lewisham bulky waste collection: booking and rules

How do I book Lewisham bulky waste collection?

Lewisham bulky waste collection can be booked through the council’s online form for large household items that cannot go out with regular waste. Check the item category before paying: mattresses and other large items cost £5 each, while an accepted fridge or freezer costs £25.

This guide covers Lewisham, London, England. SettleUK is an independent guide, not a government site, and cannot book collections or take payment. Council pages were checked on 12 November 2026; use the live official form to confirm the arrangements for your address.

Start with Lewisham’s bulky item collection page and follow “Book a bulky waste collection”. Write down each item you want removed before opening the form. Include separate components rather than assuming that an entire room’s contents form a single item.

The standard service is for household waste only. The council directs businesses to licensed waste carriers. If the waste comes from a business or a property clearance, establish the correct route before paying for a resident collection. A household booking is not permission to remove every type of waste.

How much does the collection cost?

These are per-item charges, rather than a flat price covering an unlimited pile. Make a complete list before booking and check that the confirmation describes what you actually intend to leave out. Do not assume that adding an item later will leave the original booking unchanged.

Lewisham says the collection fee is non-refundable, including when you cancel before collection. Its explanation is that the fee covers administrative and operational costs involved in arranging the visit. Check any possible reuse option before committing to a paid booking.

Carpet underlay counts as a separate item. The council also requires a carpet to be rolled, tied and manageable by two people. If you are clearing a room, distinguish the carpet from its underlay when preparing your list rather than treating them as one bundle.

Which items can go in the standard collection?

The council describes the service as a collection for household large or bulky waste that cannot go out with regular waste. Its examples include furniture, fridges, mattresses, carpets, chairs, beds and sofas. Use the booking form to check your precise object rather than relying solely on that broad description.

American-style and double-door fridges or freezers are expressly excluded. Do not book one under the ordinary fridge category and hope the crew can make an exception. If the appliance is unusual, ask the council about the right disposal route before moving it outside.

Only items you have told the council about will be removed. Additional items require a new request. Keep the booking list beside your clear-out list so you can separate booked objects from anything that still needs a decision.

All items must be clear of hazards that could injure staff. The public bulky collection page does not provide a complete rule for every hazardous or specialist material. For anything doubtful, ask the council rather than adding it to a furniture booking. Check its recycling-centre exclusions separately if considering a visit.

Which day does Lewisham collect bulky items?

The council publishes different ward schedules for ordinary large items and for fridges or freezers. Use the correct table for the material you are booking. The tables describe the published service pattern; your booking confirmation should be your reference for the actual arranged visit.

For example, Forest Hill appears on Wednesday for large items and mattresses, but Friday for fridges and freezers. Do not copy a neighbour’s furniture collection day onto your appliance booking. If your load mixes categories, check the arrangements for each category in the official form.

This guide does not supply a Christmas or bank-holiday collection calendar for 2026/27. Check the council’s current booking information for any change affecting your visit. The ordinary ward pattern alone does not verify a holiday collection date.

Where should I leave the items?

For the standard paid service, stack the booked items neatly at the edge of your property, next to the pavement but inside your boundary, the night before collection day. This is not an instruction to leave furniture on the public pavement. Keep the location consistent with what you supplied when booking.

If you live in a flat, the council says to leave items at the front of the building. Where your block does not permit items outside, speak to the building manager about leaving them in an unlocked bin chamber. Tell the council that location when you book.

Lewisham does not collect standard booked items from inside properties and cannot help carry them outside. Arrange the practical moving help you need before choosing the collection. Do not pay on the assumption that the crew will enter the home to retrieve a heavy object.

You do not have to be home when the standard collection takes place. However, the crew must be able to see and reach the items. If they cannot, the council says you will not receive a refund. Check access as carefully as the item list.

Walk through the intended route before collection and consider whether anything blocks access to the agreed location. This is a practical preparation check, not a promise that a particular access arrangement will be accepted. If you are unsure, get the council’s guidance before putting items out.

Do council estates use a different service?

The main council page says most Lewisham council housing estates have collection points for unwanted large items, for their leaseholders and tenants. People who do not live on the estate must not use those points: the council treats that as illegally dumped waste or fly-tipping.

Parts of Pepys and Trinity Estates are subject to a separate Door-to-Tip collection trial. In participating blocks, communal bulky points are being replaced by booked doorstep collections. Check the council’s block list and your resident communication before using an old collection point.

The trial page says Phase 1 is operational. For Phase 2, the last existing-point collection is Monday 30 November 2026, with Door-to-Tip collections starting Monday 7 December 2026. For Phase 3, the corresponding dates are Tuesday 1 December and Tuesday 8 December 2026.

Trial bookings can include up to three items. For Phase 2 and Phase 3, the page gives Monday-only and Tuesday-only collections respectively, morning and afternoon slots, and a booking deadline of 1pm on the preceding Friday. Same-day collections are not available.

Use 0800 028 2028, option 7 then option 2, or the contact details on the trial page. There is no upfront charge: the council says the service is covered through existing rent and service-charge arrangements. Residents with mobility or accessibility needs should explain them when booking.

For this trial, keep items inside until the agreed collection time. Do not leave them in corridors, walkways, communal areas or next to bins. That differs from the standard paid service’s outside presentation rule. If you miss a trial appointment, you need to book another.

What if plans change or the collection is missed?

The standard collection fee is non-refundable even if you cancel before the visit. If an item is taken by someone else or you decide to keep it, contact the council about the booking rather than assuming a refund follows automatically. Keep the original confirmation for your records.

Extra items require a new request. Do not leave them beside the booked items as a substitute for updating the request. A visible pile is not the same as a booking list, and the council states that it removes only items it has been told about.

The bulky page’s general enquiry form specifically says not to use it for missed collections or requests for new bins. For a missed visit, check your confirmation and ask the council for the correct reporting route. This guide does not invent a missed-collection deadline.

The bulky waste team lists a callback service on 020 8314 7171. Have your address, booking reference, item list and agreed location ready when seeking help. Explain what happened without assuming that a missed visit or an inaccessible item creates a refund entitlement.

Could the items be reused instead?

Before booking disposal, check Lewisham’s donation and reuse page. It lists local charities and organisations, as well as ways to give items away. Match the condition and type of your item to the receiving organisation’s requirements before arranging transport.

The council describes free Anglo Doorstep Collections for reusable household items including textiles, shoes, linen, small electricals, hard plastic toys, tools, books and bric-a-brac. That list should not be read as a guarantee of free collection for every large sofa or broken appliance.

Lewisham also points to British Heart Foundation, Emmaus and Deptford Action Group for the Elderly as possible furniture routes. The DAGE description refers to large items of saleable quality. Check acceptance directly through the links supplied by the council before cancelling another disposal arrangement.

For an item you hope to pass on, prepare an honest description and clear photographs. Confirm who will move it and when. These are practical planning suggestions; this guide does not promise a charity appointment or acceptance of a particular item.

Can I take bulky items to Landmann Way?

The Landmann Way Reuse and Recycling Centre is at Civic Amenities Site, Landmann Way, London, SE14 5RS. The council says use is free, no booking is needed, and the site is only open to Lewisham residents.

Take photo identification, such as a driving licence or passport, and proof of address, such as a utility bill or bank statement. Check both documents before setting off. Being able to reach the site does not establish eligibility to use it.

Accepted categories include furniture such as sofas, mattresses and wardrobes, large and small electrical items, and empty domestic fridges and freezers. Acceptance is at the site manager’s discretion. Check any unusual load against the current list rather than assuming every household object belongs in a general container.

The centre excludes landlord waste and trade waste, including waste removed by a private contractor for a resident. The council explains that items left after a tenancy become commercial waste once the property is vacant. Landlords should arrange the appropriate commercial route.

Commercial vehicles are not allowed, with the page listing signed vans, pickup trucks, minibuses and trailers. Hired vans are accepted with hire evidence, identification and proof of address. Vans are limited to four visits per year, and site staff cannot help unload. Check vehicle eligibility before hiring transport.

What should I check before booking or travelling?

Choose the route first: standard paid collection, your confirmed estate arrangement, reuse, or a permitted recycling-centre visit. Then check the item list and access conditions for that route. Combining instructions from different services is an easy way to prepare the wrong location or expect the wrong charge.

Before payment, check each item category, the total and the collection arrangement. Before collection, compare the physical items with the booking confirmation and check the agreed location. Before travelling to Landmann Way, review current opening information, vehicle rules and material exclusions on its official page.

If you need more detail about an individual item, use our mattress disposal guide or fridge disposal guide alongside Lewisham’s rules. The local council’s current instructions remain the source for whether its service can take your load.

Keep your booking information until the matter is resolved. If any fee, access condition or item acceptance remains unclear, ask the council before committing to payment or moving the item. SettleUK cannot confirm an individual booking or authorise an exception to the council’s published conditions.

SettleUK is an independent guide. It is not a government website and is not affiliated with GOV.UK, DWP, HMRC or the NHS.