Edge Hill University is committed to the sustainable management of waste to ensure legal compliance in a way that minimises environmental impact and promotes waste reduction.
Waste Management
Objectives
- To significantly reduce the environmental impacts of our waste production in accordance with the waste hierarchy: reduce, reuse, recycle, recover through reducing volumes of waste generated by our activities and increasing resource reuse and recovery
- To manage residual waste in accordance with best practice
- Ensure that waste is considered a resource by staff and students
Targets
- Reduce the total waste generated per capita (FTE staff and students) to 30% of the 2022/23 levels. Deadline: December 2030.
- Reduce CO2e emissions from waste by 30%. Deadline: December 2030.
- Commit to continue sending 0% waste generated on campus to landfill. Deadline: To be reviewed annually, next review date February 2027.
- Embed circular economy approaches within procurement and related practices by 2030, ensuring that sustainable procurement is being embedded in procurement processes. Deadline: December 2030.
Baselines
- Waste per capita 2022/23 = 39.80 kg per capita
Progress against baseline from audits:
- 2023/24 = 40 kg per capita
Recycling
Recycling at the University is a key part of how we manage waste across our estate and is promoted in line with the waste hierarchy.
Our objectives
At Edge Hill we are focused on ensuring that recycling processes are correctly followed to ensure that recycling rates are proportionate when compared to other waste streams.
Ensure that contamination of recycling is addressed and reduced where necessary.
Our targets
- Reduce the total waste generated per capita (FTE staff and students) to 30% of the 2022/23 levels. Deadline: December 2030.
- Continue to run the annual Big Campus Clear Out to divert items to local charities and food banks.
Catering Packaging and Waste Audit
In November 2025, the University’s waste management provider undertook an on‑site audit of catering packaging and waste to better understand how catering waste is currently managed and to identify opportunities for improvement.
This work builds on findings from the Waste Compositional Analysis carried out in October 2025, which identified that 40% of waste placed in general waste bins in the Hub consisted of food waste that should have been disposed of via food waste bins.
The findings from the catering audit align with the objectives set out in our Waste and Resource Strategy and are intended to address issues highlighted by the compositional analysis. In particular, the focus is on reducing the amount of food waste incorrectly disposed of in general waste and other non‑food waste streams.
Progress against these findings will be monitored, with updates reported through relevant governance channels, including the Institutional Sustainability Committee.
The Big Campus Clear Out
The University’s Sustainability Team promotes the ‘Big Campus Clear Out’ in Halls every year. The campaign that encourages students to recycle rather than throw away any usable furnishings, clothing or kitchen equipment.
