Clinical waste collection

We offer a domestic healthcare waste collection service where there is a medical need or for needles or 'sharps'. We will send you a referral form, or you can download a referral form (36 KB) which your healthcare professional, such as your GP or nurse, will need to complete. The form asks them to classify the waste. We only collect these types of waste by a special healthcare collection:

• Sharps (hypodermic needles)
• Infectious waste that needs separate treatment

Healthcare waste which is not infectious – such as incontinence pads and nappies - is classed as offensive waste; you can put it in your general household waste bin. If you already have a healthcare waste collection, please follow the below guidelines. (Requests received after 12.00 noon on a Tuesday will be delivered the following week).

If your bin is not out for five weeks in a row, we will stop the collection temporarily. When you are ready to have the waste collected again, contact us and we will re-start collection. If your household no longer requires a healthcare waste collection please let us know and we will remove the bin.

To contact our customer service centre, phone 01329 236100 or email customerservicecentre@fareham.gov.uk.

Please make sure you...

1. Wrap and seal healthcare waste securely in the correct healthcare waste bag. Bags must be tied. If you require extra bags, please ask the healthcare waste collection crew or contact the Council. Only approved bags as supplied by us can be used; not black plastic bags.
2. Contact the Council on 01329 236100 to request more bags or to book your sharps collection in plenty of time. Requests received after 12.00 noon on a Tuesday will be delivered the following week.
3. Store healthcare waste safely whilst awaiting collection.
4. Make sure that your healthcare waste is available for collection by 6.00am on the collection day notified. If you find it difficult to pull your bin out, please contact the Council to discuss other collection arrangements, which can include collecting your bin from its storage place on your property.
5. Before asking for a sharps collection, please make sure boxes are FULL, up to where it says 'Do not fill above this line' on the sharps box.
6. Please contact the Council on the above telephone number if the service is no longer required.

Please do not…

1. Put healthcare waste bags (orange or yellow plastic bags) in domestic refuse bins.
2. Overfill healthcare waste bags. The bags should not be more than three quarters full and should be tied securely to prevent spillages.
3. Forget to tie bags securely and seal sharps containers. Failure to do so will result in non-collection.
4. Place new or used syringes, needles, blades, broken glass, etc., in any container other than a Sharps box as provided for this purpose.

For more information please contact the Council by email to customerservicecentre@fareham.gov.uk or by telephone on 01329 236100.