A to Z of reusing, recycling and waste disposal

If your unwanted hair appliance is in good working order, please donate it to a charity shop, local reuse organisation, or to the Revive Leeds reuse shop at the Kirkstall or Seacroft recycling centres. If you are replacing a broken hair appliance, the retailer supplying your new appliance should offer you a take back service. Alternatively, you can recycle your hair appliance by taking it to your nearest bring site that has a WEEE bank (see W for a list of sites) or to your nearest recycling centre, where you can put it in the small electrical waste container.

Hardcore* and many building materials can be used again. Bricks, large pieces of stone, doors and windows can be sold to architectural salvage yards. Brick* and rubble* can be taken to your nearest recycling centre and put in the skips marked Bricks and Rubble. These materials are used for cover and roads on landfill sites. *Restrictions apply for disposing of some types of rubbish at our household recycling sites including hardcore, bricks and rubble. To find out more please see our guide to DIY waste disposal.

Hazardous waste should be dealt with appropriately. Please see Asbestos for more information on this. Please see Chemicals for more information on these. You can also contact the Environment Agency on 0870 850 6506 for advice on disposing of hazardous waste.

Help the Aged recycle hearing aids. Please ensure units are in working order and send them to: Hearing Aid Appeal Help the Aged FREEPOST, LON13616 London, EC1B 1PS.

Please see Chemicals

Please see Chemicals.

Please return used hypodermic needles to your doctor's surgery or health centre for safe disposal. DO NOT put these in your rubbish or recycling bin. You can order on prescription a yellow sharps bin for needles through your GP practice.

Jam jars - please see Glass Jars and Bottles

Unwanted jewellery can be taken to charity and second hand shops.

Donate complete jigsaw puzzles to your local charity shop.

You can stop junk mail by registering with the Mail Preference Service: Telephone 0207 291 3310. MPS Freepost 22 London, WE1 7EZ. Junk mail can be recycled using your green recycling bin. Please remove all plastic packaging before recycling.

Sawdust produced from untreated timber can be re-used as animal bedding. Small quantities can also be added to your compost bin/heap. It can be recycled in your brown garden waste bin, or taken to your nearest recycling centre and put in the garden waste container. Sawdust produced from MDF, chipboard or other treated timber should be bagged up and put in your black rubbish bin. Sawdust containing animal waste should be put in your black rubbish bin.

You can donate a wide range of items such as cards, papers and textiles to centres for use in community craft activities and projects. Scrap Creative Reuse Ltd is a social enterprise group which collects unwanted objects, rejects and damaged stock from businesses to distribute to community groups and schools. You can contact them on 0113 244 1576 or visit their website on the link below. Replay are a project by Leeds Play Network involving the collection of unwanted materials from businesses for use in children's craft activities. You can contact them on 0113 201 6790 or visit the Leeds Play Network website.

Please see Hypodermic Needles

If your shoes are good enough for someone else to use, please donate them to your nearest charity shop. If your shoes are not re-useable, please tie pairs together and bag them up before taking them to your nearest bring site with a textile bank or recycling centre. They will be repaired for re-use in developing countries.