Residents are being encouraged to recycle even more plastics, cans and glass bottles, but have been warned “if in doubt, leave it out”.

To help residents organise their recycling and waste collections, Watford Borough Council is currently distributing waste collection calendars with a recycling guide to every household in the borough.

Watford is one of the most efficient local authorities in the county when it comes to reducing and recycling waste, with 43 per cent of the town's waste recycled in the first half of this year.

The recycling guide contains a quick reference of the items that can be recycled by the scheme and those that have to be disposed of in your black wheeled bin.

Watford Borough Council’s environment services manager, Bev Beri, said: “It has been very encouraging to see the percentage of our waste that is recycled go up as more residents recycle.

“Please only recycle the correct items. If residents put out incorrect items for recycling this contaminates the waste, and the council incurs an extra cost for disposal.

“Please recycle as much as you can – but if in doubt, leave it out.”