Behaviours and views on recycling, waste and plastics pollution in England

Research conducted by Ipsos UK, working with Technopolis and Ricardo and commissioned by the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), has found that trends to recycle more and reduce waste and plastic pollution are on the rise amongst consumers. However, challenges remain such as missed opportunities to prevent contamination of waste streams, and misconceptions around the negative impacts of plastics pollution. This shows there is room for improvement.

Individuals and businesses surveyed in England for this research self-reported high recycling rates, but this varies significantly between types of waste. Over 80% of surveyed individuals and businesses said they always or normally recycle plastic bottles or containers, aluminium or steel cans and paper and cardboard, but only about a third always or mostly recycled food waste.

Figure 1: What do you do with each of the following types of waste? (selection of items)

While the willingness to recycle is clearly prevalent in England, there is still confusion about what can and can’t be recycled.  Data from WRAP (2023) indicated that waste contamination was prevalent, with 81% of UK citizens found to dispose of items in the recycling that were not accepted in their household collection and that UK citizens on average dispose of 5.4 items incorrectly at home on each disposal occasion. Our research further indicates that only about half (48%) of individuals in England check the labelling on the product or its packaging before disposing if they are uncertain how something could be recycled or whether it could be recycled at all, and fewer check any other sources of information. Interestingly, 19% of individuals reported that they did not check at all when unsure, and 10% said they put it straight into the rubbish bin with non-recyclable waste. This indicates that there is a significant need to educate the public on what to recycle and also to raise awareness on how they can check themselves.

In addition to positive signs on individuals’ willingness to recycle, our research indicates that consumers noticed a trend towards a more circular economy taking place in England. Of a nationally representative survey of individuals in the general population, almost half reported that they had noticed more refurbished or upcycled products over the past 12 months and over six in ten had noticed more items that are designed to be reused, with the majority expecting these trends to be sustained over the next year. 

This was reflected in our research which surveyed a non-representative sample of businesses and found that implementation of practices to improve the circularity and sustainability of products was particularly high amongst businesses selling either electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) textiles or batteries. However, practices that require small changes to business models or that put the responsibility to act on customers rather than the business itself were more popular. 

Furthermore, a clear shift towards more recyclable and less resource intensive packaging was noticeable in the research. Most producers of consumer-packaged goods and food and drink retailers and businesses  surveyed reported that using packaging that can be easily recycled was commercially advantageous. This trend towards improved sustainability of packaging (e.g., increased recyclability and use of recycled materials) was also noticed by the majority of individuals and businesses surveyed for this research, who further stated that they expected this trend to be sustained over the next 12 months.

Based on secondary data, the research found that progress has been made in reducing plastic waste and pollution in recent years, as the total plastic packaging placed on the UK market has declined by 3% from 2019 to 2021 (WRAP 2022) and the recycled content in plastic packaging increased to  24% in 2022 (WRAP 2023).

The concerns and efforts to increase the sustainability of packaging particularly reflects the wider issue of plastic pollution. There is high awareness of the environmental impacts of plastic pollution amongst individuals in England, with 78% of a nationally representative survey stating they knew about these. Most commonly, respondents were aware of the threat plastics can pose to marine life (89%) and that plastic pollution can affect various wildlife species (87%). However, misconceptions remain - for example, 10% of the general population in England stated that they thought plastic pollution cannot damage or alter natural habitats.

To reduce plastic waste and pollution, consumer behaviour needs to change further, including reducing the use of single-use plastic items. The ban on certain single-use plastic items introduced in October 2023 presents a further step in that direction, as does the upcoming ban on single-use vapes (to come into effect in June 2025). 

In England, the usage of single-use plastic items amongst individuals surveyed was low but varied between different types of items (see Figure 2). Most individuals surveyed reported that they had used some form of reusable alternative rather than disposable products ‘recently’ (in the past four weeks), but barriers related to accessibility and availability of these products remain. Individuals especially reported using single-use items outside of the house (e.g., at restaurants and bars).

Figure 2: Please select which of the below, if any, you have done over the past four weeks

About this research

This research comes from the Baseline Data Report for England, conduct as part of a wider process, impact and value for money (VfM) evaluation of the Resource and Waste Policy Programme (RWPP). Both the Baseline Data Report for England and the Impact Evaluation Methodology were published by Defra at the end of 2024. 

The RWPP, borne out of Defra’s 2018 Resources and Waste Strategy for England, initiated a range of policies designed to drive systemic change in the waste management sector. The aims for the programme are to preserve the available material resources by minimising waste, enhancing resource efficiency, and adopting a circular economy. These are expected to provide a clear longer-term policy direction in line with Goal 5 (maximise our resources, minimise our waste) in the Environment Improvement Plan. 

In 2022, the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs commissioned Ipsos UK, working with Technopolis and Ricardo, to conduct the high quality and robust evaluation of the RWPP. The evaluation is an ongoing programme of continuous data collection comprising of both primary data collection (both surveys and interviews with the general public, various businesses, Local Authorities) and secondary data collection (using existing data sources).