31st March 2025 may have been and gone, but dental practices should be aware of the UK Government’s Simpler Recycling Policy that came into force on that date.
In particular, these changes to workplace recycling will affect almost all practices. Those that do not fit the initial criteria will still need to get up to speed by 31st March 2027.[i]
Whether your practice must comply currently or has time to make effective changes, it’s important to know the new rules you must follow. Waste management is a key part of every dental practice, and these regulations may encourage you to review your wider workflows.
The new regulations
In a world where environmental action has become a priority for governments and healthcare regulators, it’s imperative to stay familiar with changing waste workflows. The latest amendments that came into effect on 31st March were aimed at all businesses with over 10 full-time equivalent staff members, including dental practices.i
Those that have fewer than 10 full-time equivalent employees are categorised as a micro-firm, and are exempt from the rule changes until 31st March 2027.i Multi-site practices must be aware that these rules judge the business as a collective, not by singular locations.
The changes call for dental teams to separate more of their everyday waste before collection, including that produced by visitors and patients. There must be a separation of:
- Dry recyclable materials (plastic, metal, glass, paper and card – must be non-contaminated)
- Food waste (such as tea bags, coffee grounds, peelings and leftovers)
- Non-recyclable waste, or residual waste
As a default, paper and card waste are separated into their own category.[ii] This is because when packaged with other dry recyclable materials, there is evidence to suggest they have high levels of contamination, which affects the recycling rate. Examples include broken glass stuck on paper or soggy paper from liquid found in bottles and cans, which impact the waste workflow.ii
Waste collectors may require each other dry recyclable material to be separated too, though this is dependent on the workflow of individual waste specialists rather than the new guidance.
Make amends now
Changes must be made in the dental practice immediately if you meet the minimum 10 full-time equivalent employee criteria, but haven’t yet taken steps to meet the regulation. Failure to do so leaves you at risk of a compliance notice from the Environment Agency.i It is an offence not to follow this compliance notice, and risks enforcement action.
Whilst you may need new containers to further segregate associated items, much like when adhering to the clinical waste guidelines in the Health Technical Memorandum 07-01 (HTM 07-01),[iii] it is advantageous to first speak to your waste collection specialist. You’ll want to understand how they collect the waste items that are affected by the new regulations, and understand whether it is necessary to segregate materials like metal, plastic and glass separately at the source, or whether they can do this for you.
The size of containers and frequency of waste collections are for the dental practice to decide in conjunction with their waste management specialist.i Once again, it is prudent to consult on these before committing to changes and investing in products.
Speaking to the dental team about opportunities to maximise appropriate waste segregation is important. Consider that in a dental practice, affected items will include food waste from staff lunches, coffee grounds and tea bags; glass from drinks bottles; paper from envelopes, boxes and cardboard packaging; and much more.i
New regulations, same effective workflows
This change to waste management in the dental practice must be implemented quickly by all affected. The segregation of waste items is nothing new to dental professionals, as seen with HTM 07-01, which means that clinical teams should be able to quickly adapt to the guidance.
Clinicians must recognise how to separate items such as highly infectious clinical waste, known infectious clinical waste, anatomical tissue, offensive waste, and generic confidential waste into a colour-coded waste system.iii Not all of this can be recycled, or disposed of in an entirely ‘green’ manner – but the segregation minimises the contamination of recyclable materials, creating greater opportunities for recycling, Energy from Waste (EfW) disposal, and more.
Initial Medical, a leader in healthcare waste management services in the UK, supports dental practices remotely and in-person for optimal regulatory compliance. The expert team provides up-to-date regulatory advice to dental professionals, whilst also collecting clinical waste from practices across the country. Clinical teams can get in touch to learn more about effective changes to their own waste workflows.
Regulatory compliance for waste management is paramount for dental practices. Whether your business needs to make changes immediately or has a buffer until 2027, acting quickly with the support of a waste management specialist is especially useful.
Initial Medical set the standard in healthcare and infectious waste management in the UK, providing a reliable, effective and fully compliant service built around customer needs and delivered by our highly trained local teams. We are ISO 9001:2015 accredited, with technology fully integrated into our operations, providing full traceability of service delivery, electronic waste documentation and the best customer experience possible. We also offer innovative healthcare waste management services and infection control products to help break the chain of transmission and prevent cross contamination.
Initial Medical are a company with a ‘World Class’ Health and Safety record, and ISO 45001:2018 accreditation. We are also accredited to ISO 14001:2015 environmental standards, and pride ourselves on our sustainable approach with a focus on delivering eco-friendly products and operational solutions.
To find out more, get in touch at 0808 304 7411 or visit the website today www.initial.co.uk/medical
Rebecca Waters
Rebecca has worked in the healthcare sector for the past 20 years and earned a BSc Chemistry (Hons) prior to joining Rentokil Initial in 2003. She works within the Research and Development team and keeps up-to-date on all changes within the clinical waste management industry, as well as the specialist hygiene and infection control industries, and is an active member of the CIWM and HWMA. Following roles as an Analytical Chemist and Hygiene Chemist, she has worked in a variety of leading marketing roles since 2006, making her an expert within the industry. She is a Fellow at the Chartered Institute of Marketing, an FCIM. Rebecca loves spending time outdoors and in the water – whether walking, camping, or swimming – and completed a focus on environmental studies during her university degree. She is proud to be pushing a sustainability agenda throughout her work.
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REFERENCES
[i] Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, (2025). Simpler recycling: workplace recycling in England. GOV.UK. (Online) Available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/simpler-recycling-workplace-recycling-in-england [Accessed April 2025]
[ii] Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, (2024). Simpler Recycling in England: policy update. (Online) Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/simpler-recycling-in-england-policy-update/simpler-recycling-in-england-policy-update [Accessed April 2025]
[iii] NHS England, (2022). Health Technical Memorandum 07-01: Safe and sustainable management of healthcare waste. (Online) Available at: https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/B2159iii-health-technical-memorandum-07-01.pdf [Accessed April 2025]
