Can I recycle it?
Mobile phones are not collected as part of the recycling collection and should not be put out with your general rubbish. Their batteries pose a significant fire hazard if discarded incorrectly and should be disposed of safely and separately.
Useful information
Mobile phones contain a range of materials that can be extracted and re-used. There are an increasing number of options for recycling and re-using old mobile phones. Or alternatively they can be taken to any Household Waste Recycling Centre and placed in the small electrical items skip.
Donate or sell
Charity shops are always grateful for donations of unwanted items in good condition. You could also organise a give and take event or give items away via Freecycle, Freegle.
You can donate usable furniture to community projects like:
- RE:SOURCE in Bodmin
- Heartlands Furniture in Pool
- GOFA in Penzance
- Cornwall and Plymouth Furniture Reuse Project.
Or sell your spare stuff at garage sales and car boot sales or on eBay. If you can transport items yourself, most towns have their own auction rooms. They are also a good way of selling and buying second hand items.
Retailer take-back
Buying a new electrical item from the high street?
Shops will now recycle the one you’re replacing for free.
Visit Recycle your Electricals for more information
- Larger shops that sell electricals will take your old item if you buy new from them.
- You have 28 days after buying something new to take your old one in for recycling
- It doesn’t need to have come from the same shop.
- Check your local stores beforehand
Household Waste and Recycling Centres
View our Household Waste Recycling Centres to find
- location maps
- opening times
- materials accepted
You can also find your nearest centre by entering your postcode on our my area page.
For safety reasons, no public pedestrian access is allowed through the entrance or exit gates at any of our household waste recycling centres.
We now take commercial waste at our St Erth and Launceston HWRCs. You’ll need to book a slot in advance using our online booking system. To find out more, visit: Commercial Waste at HWRCs.
We only take waste from households at our other sites.