Direct answer
Greenford Road Reuse and Recycling Centre (UB6 9AP) is run by Ealing Council for residents disposing of their own household waste. It's open Monday, Tuesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday - 8am–5pm from April to September, 8am–4pm from October to March - and closed Wednesday and Thursday. Booking a time slot online is compulsory, not optional: arrive without one and you can be refused entry. Each household can book up to two 30-minute slots a week, up to two weeks ahead. Cars use the standard entrance; vans and any vehicle over 1.8m are directed to a separate weighbridge entrance and should be booked under a van slot rather than a car slot. It's worth being clear that this is a self-service drop-off site - a genuinely different thing from a council or private collection service that comes to your home, which is covered separately below.
Contents
Visit requirements at a glance
What to arrange before you turn up, based on Ealing Council's current guidance.
| Visit requirement | Current rule | What the resident must arrange |
|---|---|---|
| Eligibility | Site is for Ealing residents disposing of their own household waste. | Bring photo ID and proof of address showing you live in the borough. |
| Opening days | Open Monday, Tuesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Closed Wednesday, Thursday, and on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day. | Plan your visit around these days - check Ealing Council's page for any other seasonal closures. |
| Opening hours | 8am–5pm (1 April–30 September); 8am–4pm (1 October–31 March). Last booking slot is 30 minutes before close. | Book a slot that leaves enough time to unload before the site closes. |
| Booking | Compulsory - arriving without a booking can mean refused entry. | Book online in advance; up to 2 slots per household per week, 30 minutes each, up to 2 weeks ahead. |
| Car access | Cars, motorcycles and cyclists use the standard entrance. | Book a standard car slot and bring your booking confirmation. |
| Van access | Vehicles over 1.8m (5ft 11in), including most vans, must use a separate weighbridge entrance; vans are limited to roughly 30 minutes on site. | Book under a van/commercial slot rather than a car slot, and confirm any current weight limit before travelling. |
These are the published rules at the time of writing - confirm current details directly with Ealing Council's recycling centre page before you travel.
Address, opening days and hours
Where the site is and when it's open.
The site sits on Greenford Road, Greenford, Middlesex, postcode UB6 9AP. Ealing Council calls it the Greenford Road Reuse and Recycling Centre, and it's the borough's main household waste and recycling site.
Opening hours change with the season. From 1 April to 30 September the centre is open Monday, Tuesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, 8am to 5pm, with the last booking slot at 4pm to 4:30pm. From 1 October to 31 March the same five days apply, 8am to 4pm, with the last slot at 3pm to 3:30pm. It's closed all day Wednesday and Thursday, and closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day. Because council-run sites can adjust hours, check the current opening hours on Ealing Council's website before setting off, particularly around bank holidays.
Booking a slot
Not advisory - compulsory.
Unlike some recycling centres where booking is only recommended, Ealing Council requires every visitor to Greenford to book a time slot online before arriving. Residents who turn up without a booking can be refused entry at the gate, so this isn't a step worth skipping even for a quick drop-off.
Each household can book up to two 30-minute slots per week. Bookings normally open up to two weeks ahead, and new slots are released on an ongoing basis - so if nothing suitable is available when you first check, it's worth checking back rather than assuming the week is fully booked. Confirm the current booking requirement and process directly on Ealing Council's booking page, since this is exactly the kind of operational detail that can change without much notice.
Vans, weighbridge and vehicle limits
A different entrance, and a different booking category.
Cars, motorcycles and cyclists use the site's standard entrance. Vans - and any vehicle taller than roughly 1.8m (5ft 11in) - are directed to a separate weighbridge entrance instead, so if you've booked a standard car slot but arrive in a van, you shouldn't assume the same slot will let you in. Van visits are generally capped at around 30 minutes on site, shorter for cars. Ealing Council has previously confirmed that van users and commercial customers can use the site via the weighbridge, but since vehicle and booking-category rules are the sort of detail councils review periodically, confirm the current van booking category and any weight limit directly with Ealing Council before you load up and drive over.
If you're clearing a whole property rather than making a single tip run, a self-service van visit here isn't really a substitute for a proper house clearance in Ealing carried out by a licensed carrier - the carrier arranges their own collection and disposal, so you wouldn't normally need to book a slot here yourself for that job. For bulkier individual items rather than a full clearance, see our guide to rubbish removal and waste collection in London for how a collection-based service compares to a tip run.
Disposal permission vs a collection service
Two genuinely different things, easy to conflate.
It's worth being precise about what Greenford recycling centre actually is, because the two options get mixed up fairly often. Greenford is a disposal permission site: it's a self-service location where you book a slot, load your own vehicle with your own waste, drive it to the site, and unload it yourself within your booked time. Nobody comes to you - the entire visit, from booking to unloading, is something the resident arranges and carries out in person.
A collection service, by contrast, is where someone else comes to your home to take items away - whether that's Ealing Council's own bulky waste collection for larger household items, or a private licensed carrier collecting as part of a paid clearance. A collection service generally means no driving, no booking a site slot, and no weighbridge - but it typically comes with its own separate booking process and, for council bulky collections, its own charge per item or per collection. For responsible disposal more broadly, both routes end up at a recycling or reuse facility - the difference is purely in who does the physical moving and which booking system applies.
What's accepted - and what's refused
One firm rule confirmed; the full list is on Ealing Council's site.
Ealing Council does not accept any form of asbestos at the Greenford site, under any circumstances. Beyond that single firm rule, the detailed accepted and refused materials list - covering categories such as electrical items, paint, garden waste and specific chemicals - is published and maintained directly by Ealing Council, and is worth checking before you load the car or van, since individual category rules are reviewed from time to time. The free household allowance covers two 50-litre rubble bags, or one item no larger than 2m x 0.75m x 0.7m, per household per week - loads beyond that may be treated differently, so check current terms if you're bringing more than this.
Clearing more than a van load?
For a full house, flat or room clearance, post the job and compare quotes from licensed carriers instead of making repeat tip runs.
Request clearance quotesFrequently asked questions
Tied to the verified facts above - confirm anything time-sensitive directly with Ealing Council.
Where is Greenford recycling centre and who can use it?
The site is on Greenford Road, Greenford, Middlesex UB6 9AP, run by Ealing Council. It's provided for Ealing residents disposing of their own household waste - you'll need to bring photo ID and proof of address showing you live in the borough. This page covers the Greenford site specifically, not Ealing Council's separate bulky-item collection service.
What are the opening hours?
From 1 April to 30 September the centre is open Monday, Tuesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, 8am to 5pm, with the last booking slot at 4pm to 4:30pm. From 1 October to 31 March it's open the same five days, 8am to 4pm, with the last slot at 3pm to 3:30pm. It's closed all day Wednesday and Thursday, and closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day. Always check Ealing Council's current page before travelling, since council-run sites can change hours.
Do I need to book a slot before visiting?
Yes - booking is compulsory, not optional. Ealing Council requires every visitor to book a time slot online in advance, and residents who arrive without a booking can be turned away at the gate. You can book up to two slots per household per week, each slot lasts 30 minutes, and bookings normally open up to two weeks ahead, with new slots released daily.
Can I bring a van, and does it need a different booking?
Vans are generally permitted, but not through the standard car entrance - vehicles over 1.8m (5ft 11in), which includes most vans, are directed to a separate weighbridge entrance, and you should book under a van or commercial booking category rather than a standard car slot. Van visits are capped at around 30 minutes on site. Because this kind of operational detail can change, confirm the current van booking category and any weight limit directly with Ealing Council before you travel.
What's the difference between this recycling centre and Ealing Council's bulky waste collection?
They're genuinely different services. Greenford recycling centre is a self-service drop-off site - you load your own vehicle, book a slot, and bring the waste to the site yourself. Ealing Council's bulky waste collection, by contrast, is a pickup service where the council (or a private contractor) comes to your home to collect items - no driving or booking a site visit required, but it typically involves a separate booking and, for non-recyclable bulky items, a council collection charge. If you're clearing a whole property rather than dropping off a car boot of items, a house clearance carrier that collects directly from the property may suit the job better than either option - see our guide to house clearance in Ealing.
What can't I take to Greenford recycling centre?
Ealing Council does not accept any form of asbestos at the Greenford site under any circumstances. Beyond that, a full current accepted and refused materials list is published on Ealing Council's own page and is worth checking before you load the car or van, since specific category rules (such as plasterboard, tyres or certain chemicals) are the kind of detail that can change and weren't independently confirmed for this guide.
