Kensington Christmas bin collections: only 3 days missed

Kensington and Chelsea does not publish a revised Christmas bin timetable, and the reason is unusual: it barely changes anything. The borough collects household rubbish twice a week and, unlike almost every other council in England, it collects on most bank holidays too. Over Christmas 2026 it will miss just three days. Everything else, from the Christmas tree drop-off points to the tip in Wandsworth, follows the pattern the council set last winter.

The quick answer

No rubbish or recycling is collected on Christmas Day (Friday 25 December), Boxing Day or New Year’s Day (Friday 1 January 2027). Every other collection day runs as normal, including the days between Christmas and New Year. Put sacks out before 7am on your collection day, never the night before. Real Christmas trees went to 27 free drop-off points from 28 December to 18 January last winter, with a kerbside collection from 2 to 16 January; the 2026 dates are expected in November. The tip at Smugglers Way is shut on the same three days and needs a booking if you arrive by car.

The three days with no collection

The council’s own rule is short. It “collects rubbish twice a week and on most bank holidays”, and it names five days a year when it does not: Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Day, Good Friday and the summer bank holiday (RBKC, household rubbish and recycling). The Easter and summer days have passed, so three remain this winter.

One thing the council has not yet said. Boxing Day falls on a Saturday this year, and the public holiday moves to Monday 28 December. The council’s own list of public holidays for 2026/27 gives “Boxing Day: Monday 28 December 2026” (RBKC, school term and holiday dates), but the rubbish page names the day rather than the date. If your street has a Saturday or Monday collection, treat both days as uncertain until the council confirms which one it skips. This page will be updated when it does.

There is no catch-up day. Because every property is visited twice a week, a missed collection is simply followed by the next scheduled one, and the council’s advice for a missed day is to wait for it. Leaving sacks out on any other day is an offence carrying a fixed penalty of up to £1,000, and that rule is not relaxed for Christmas. Your two weekly days are on our bin days page, or in the council’s street lookup.

Garden waste subscribers should check the council’s garden waste page nearer the time. As of 25 September it published no Christmas suspension for the fortnightly Wednesday round.

Christmas tree recycling: 27 drop-off points

The council’s tree page still shows the 2025/26 arrangements, last updated on 12 November 2025, so the shape below is last winter’s and the 2026 dates are expected in the second week of November (RBKC, Christmas tree recycling).

Drop-off points ran from Sunday 28 December 2025 to Sunday 18 January 2026. Remove the pot and decorations first. The 27 sites were:

• North: Emslie Horniman Park (Kensal Road side), Sainsbury’s on Canal Way, Little Wormwood Scrubs opposite Brewster Gardens, Kensington Memorial Park at the St Helen’s Gardens entrance, All Saints Church at the top of Colville Gardens, Cornwall Crescent at Clarendon Road, Tavistock Road at Basing Street, Pembridge Square from Pembridge Villas, Kensington Park Road at Convent Gardens, Bramley Road at Whitchurch Road, and Avondale Park at the Walmer Road east entrance.
• Central: Holland Park car park on Abbotsbury Road, Palace Gate by the sculpture at Kensington Gate, Campden Hill Road outside Kensington Town Hall, Lexham Gardens opposite Lexham Walk, and Redfield Lane at the start of the walkway to Cromwell Road.
• South: Ifield Road near the Finborough Theatre, Onslow Gardens at Ensor Mews, Halsey Street at Cadogan Street, Cremorne Gardens on Lots Road, the southern end of Hans Place, Royal Avenue at St Leonard’s Terrace, the south side of the church at The Boltons, Robinson Street opposite the church, Dovehouse Green, Westfield Park at the Tetcott Road north entrance, and Kempsford Gardens next to Warwick Road.

Kerbside collection ran from Friday 2 January to Friday 16 January 2026. Put the tree out before 7am on a normal collection day, pot and decorations removed, where it is visible and not blocking the pavement. Estates, mansion blocks and flats can ask the caretaker to book a one-off bulk collection through Streetline on 020 7361 3001, a service that ends in mid-January.

The tip: shut 25, 26 December and 1 January

There is no household waste site inside the borough. Residents use the Western Riverside Waste Authority site at Smugglers Way, Wandsworth SW18 1JS, which is closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day and otherwise keeps its usual hours: 9am to 4pm Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm on Saturday and 8am to 5pm on Sunday (Wandsworth Council, Smugglers Way HWRC). Book a slot if you are coming by car. Vans, cars over 2 metres and cars with trailers cannot enter and are sent to the transfer station instead. Expect the first open days after Christmas to be busy. More on booking and what it takes is in the tip section of our bins page.

Parking, libraries and the other Christmas closures

Parking on the bank holidays is simpler than usual. On bank holidays and public holidays, pay-by-phone bays are free, resident permit bay restrictions do not apply, and single yellow lines are not enforced unless a vehicle is obstructing traffic. Single yellow lines that operate on Sundays are also switched off on Christmas Day. Double yellow lines apply every day of the year, and a suspension sign on the street overrides all of it (RBKC, bank holiday parking). The rest of the year’s rules are on our parking page.

Libraries have already published their Christmas hours, which is the one 2026 timetable the council has confirmed (RBKC, libraries Christmas and New Year opening hours):

Trains and Tube services over the same days are on our Christmas travel page.

Still to be confirmed

• Which day counts as Boxing Day for collections, Saturday 26 or Monday 28 December. Expected when the council updates its rubbish page.
• The 2026 Christmas tree dates and sites. Last year’s page was published on 12 November; we will check from then.
• Garden waste over Christmas. Nothing published as of 25 September.