Mural painted on a wall showing a fisherman in a plastic bottle to raise awareness of Recycle Week

Recycle Week

The nation’s annual celebration of recycling

Recycle Week is Recycle Now's flagship annual event which is a celebration of recycling across the nation.

It’s the one week of the year where retailers, brands, waste management companies, trade associations, governments and the media come together to achieve one goal: to galvanise the public into recycling more of the right things, more often.

Recycle Week 2024

Recycle Week 2024 - 14-20 September 2024

We are excited to announce that this year’s Recycle Week theme is ‘Rescue Me’. The campaign will run from 14th-20th October 2024, focusing on rescuing recyclable items from the rubbish bin. 

Thank you to Boots and Tesco for sponsoring Recycle Week 2024 and supporting us in our mission to inspire everyone to rescue those recyclables from the rubbish bin! 

By recycling at least one extra item as part of our daily recycling routine will make a huge difference.

Opportunities to get involved

Recognition of our Recycle Now ‘swoosh logo’ is at an all-time high, with 80% of citizens recalling the logo. Joining Recycle Week celebrations will align your brand with this national high-profile event and demonstrate that it takes sustainability seriously.

If you are interested in becoming an official sponsor of Recycle Week 2024, please contact us: PartnerEnquiries@wrap.org.uk

Sponsors for Recycle Week 2024

Recycle Week through the years

Since 2004 Recycle Week has delivered the nation's largest recycling behaviour change campaign. Through an ambitious mix of film, social media, on street initiatives, influencers, radio and PR, Recycle Week has encouraged citizens to recycle, using the power of its one voice.

Our research

Through WRAP’s Recycling Tracker, we know that 88% of UK households regularly recycle. This is a testament to the focus and investment from WRAP’s citizen-facing brand Recycle Now and its partners over the years.

However, the data in the Recycling Tracker highlights that 87% of UK households recycle 1 or more items which are not accepted in the kerbside recycling and 57% miss one or more items which could be recycled at the kerbside.

We have made great strides, but more is needed. In a world where resources are limited, Recycle Now’s vision is to get people recycling the right things more often.

Recycle Week 2023 – The Big Recycling Hunt

The Big Recycling Hunt logo in green and blue text on a white background

Recycle Week 2023 took place between 16th-22th October 2023. The theme - The Big Recycling Hunt - focused on “missed capture”: the items that can be recycled but are commonly missed in the home.  

In 2023, Recycle Week celebrated its 20th anniversary and inspired children, families and whole communities to get involved. The campaign had two distinct elements: firstly for schools – encouraging the country’s children to partake in fun activities throughout Recycle Week, plus a focus on local authorities, partners and brands to share the central the message.

Primary schools in England and Northern Ireland were asked to sign up to The Action Pack to receive all the latest information and details of how to take part. Local authorities, brands and retailers got behind the Big Recycling Hunt by signing up to receive all the latest campaign information.

WRAP Recycling Summit 17-19 October 2023


First ever Recycling Summit, as part of Recycle Week 2023

To celebrate the 20th anniversary of Recycle Week, we were proud to present WRAP’s very first Recycling Summit from 17th-19th October 2023.

This must-attend online event was a great opportunity to learn about our cutting-edge insights and work in circular economy.