Online Disposal Request
You can book a waste collection via the Online Disposal Request Form whilst working on campus and connected directly to the University network, but please note that this may not be available when working from home or off-site.
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Book a waste collection via the Online Disposal Request Form for the following items:
✔ Furniture, bags of confidential waste, pallets, non-IT electrical equipment, bulky waste. These items will be collected by the portering team and re-used or recycled where possible before disposal.
Please do not use the online form for the following items; you must contact waste@reading.ac.uk directly if you need to dispose of any of these items:
❌ Fridges, freezers, chillers, aircon equipment - the refrigerant gases must be disposed of correctly;
❌ Chemicals, paints, oils, gas cylinders, fluorescent tubes or contaminated items (i.e. hazardous waste);
❌ Large or very heavy items that cannot be easily moved manually.
For all data-holding equipment and all IT equipment, please use the free-of-charge 'Reuse & Recycle Service' offered by DTS - do not use the Online Disposal Request Form. Please also read the IT Equipment Disposal Policy if you need to dispose of IT equipment.
Please note that the Online Waste Disposal Form is only available to staff working on campus whilst connected the University network, not when working from home. If you have problems using the form, please send an email to waste@reading.ac.uk
Hints and tips on completing the Online Disposal Request Form
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- Hover your mouse over the [?] icons (do not click!) to display additional help information.
- Please provide as much detail as possible, this will help prevent delays in your request being processed and collected.
- Ensure that the Project Code Number supplied is correct; invalid or closed codes will result in your request being rejected. Charges are made automatically (based on item type and quantity), and once the form is submitted the Code cannot be changed.
- Once an Item Type and a Sub Type have been selected on the form, details regarding small, medium and large categories will appear - please select the quantity of each size that you have for disposal and write a brief description of the relevant items to be collected.
- If your items are heavy or hazardous, please make us aware by ticking the correct boxes and providing more information.
- Always save your items by clicking on the 'Save Items' button - they will then appear at the bottom of the page in the 'Saved Items' section.
- If you have different categories of items: input all the data for one set of items, click 'Save Items' and then choose the next Item Type and Sub Type category to add more.
- If you have items in different rooms in a building: input all the data for items in one room, click 'Save Items' and then change the room information (see 'Location of Item' section) before adding more items.
- If you have catering or laboratory items you will need to declare that they are clean and safe to collect - a tick box will appear.
- When you have finished inputting information for all items in a building (and they have been saved at the bottom of the page in the 'Saved Items' section), click on the 'Submit Request' button. The form will then be sent to the Estates Helpdesk to be processed, and you will be sent an email giving a WREN job reference.
Order New Confidential Waste Bags and/or a Collection of Cartridge Recycling Boxes
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If you require new (empty) confidential waste bags to be delivered, or you want to request collection of full printer/toner cartridge recycling boxes, please send an email to waste@reading.ac.uk with details of how many items, the location, and any access requirements for the Porters. The request will then be passed on to the Porters for them to undertake on a free-of-charge basis.
Please note that you must use the Online Disposal Request Form above to request collection of full confidential waste bags, since this is a chargeable service.
Skip hire
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If you are having a clear out, or are moving offices and have a lot of waste to dispose of, we can arrange skip hires. Charges apply and do change over time, so contact us waste@reading.ac.uk for an up-to-date estimate.
Please remember to reduce waste by re-using wherever possible - the University has a re-use portal (called Warp-it) and a contract with an equipment reseller (UniGreenScheme).
Personally owned IT equipment
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The University no longer provides a service for staff to securely dispose of their personally-owned IT equipment via the online shop. If you are using a personally-owned piece of IT equipment for business purposes, under the University's Bring Your Own Device Policy, and you want to dispose of it, please contact DTS via device-lifecycle-dts@reading.ac.uk to discuss options.
Disposal Charges
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Schools and Functions must cover the cost of disposal of unwanted waste items in line with the University's Waste Services Recharge Policy. For this reason, a valid Project Code must be given when filling in the Waste Disposal Request Form. Each category of item on the Form has a different disposal charge, so the total disposal cost will be calculated automatically when the Form is submitted. Once a Disposal Request is received it will be processed by the Estates Helpdesk and a Portering Job will be raised and assigned a WREN reference number. The Porters will then collect the items for disposal. Please note that items specified on a Disposal Request that are subsequently not made available for collection, or are incorrectly labelled for disposal, or are labelled with the wrong WREN reference number, will still be charged.
Current disposal charge rates can be found here (staff login required). Please note that Portering Services will also charge for the Porters' labour/time to undertake the job, which will be re-charged separately from the total disposal cost.
Are there charges for items in good condition which could be re-used?
Firstly, please offer items that are in good condition to other departments using the Warp-it re-use portal; re-homing items via Warp-it is free of charge if the items are stored locally (the person claiming items is responsible for any collection/delivery costs). However, if your item does not find a home and you would like it removed, you will need to complete the online Waste Disposal Request Form. Charges will then apply in-line with the details above.
Where items in good condition are sent for disposal, the Porters will assess them and, at their discretion, put them into storage (if there is space available) to be advertised for re-use via the Warp-it platform. When items are "rescued" in this way, the disposal charge paid by the original owner covers the subsequent storage and advertisement on Warp-it. The disposal charge also covers final disposal, if the item cannot be re-homed. The storage, advertising via Warp-it and any disposal is jointly managed by Sustainability Services and Portering Services.