Stevenage tip on Caxton Way opens 10am to 5.30pm every day and shuts only on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day. The ePass rule and what it takes.
The Stevenage tip is the household waste recycling centre on Caxton Way, and it is run by Hertfordshire County Council, not the borough. That matters because the two councils’ websites give different opening hours and even different postcodes for it. The county runs the site, staffs the gate and issues the ePass you now need to get in, so its page is the one to trust, and this page follows it.
The quick answer
The Stevenage recycling centre, Caxton Way, SG1 2DF is open 10am to 5.30pm every day of the week, Monday to Sunday. It opens on every bank holiday except Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day. You need an ePass to visit, and you should bring proof of address. Business waste is refused, DIY waste is limited, and vans, trailers and visitors from outside Hertfordshire all need an ePass before they turn up (Hertfordshire County Council, Stevenage recycling centre).
Opening hours
| Day | Hours |
|---|---|
| Monday to Friday | 10am to 5.30pm |
| Saturday | 10am to 5.30pm |
| Sunday | 10am to 5.30pm |
| Bank holidays | 10am to 5.30pm |
| Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year's Day | Closed |
The county’s page says the same hours apply every day, with no separate summer and winter timetable. Its bin-availability panel is updated through the day; on 24 September 2026 every container was listed as available, and the page carries a queue camera so you can see how busy the site is before you leave home.
A note on the borough council’s page. Stevenage Borough Council’s own recycling centre page gives the hours as 10am to 6pm Monday to Friday and Sunday, 8am to 6pm on Saturday, and the postcode as SG1 1XW. Those are not what the operator publishes. If you plan a visit around the borough’s hours you could arrive at a closed gate at 5.45pm on a weekday or at 8am on a Saturday. Use the county’s times.
The ePass
Hertfordshire County Council now requires an ePass to visit any of its recycling centres. You apply on the county’s site (Hertfordshire County Council, recycling centre ePasses) and it is checked at the gate. The county’s page also says to bring proof of address, and lists a driving licence, council tax bill, Hertfordshire bus pass or utility bill as examples. You qualify if you pay council tax to a Hertfordshire council; the borough’s page adds that Cambridgeshire, Essex and Central Bedfordshire residents are also admitted.
Vans, trailers and anyone from outside Hertfordshire are told separately that they need an ePass, so do not turn up in a hired van expecting to talk your way in.
What you can take
The county lists these containers on site: wood, mixed recycling, hardcore and rubble, scrap metal, rigid plastics, garden waste, glass bottles and jars, paper, plasterboard, cardboard, fridges and freezers, general rubbish, large non-recyclables, large domestic appliances, soil, small appliances, soft furnishings, textiles and household batteries.
Two limits apply:
- Business waste is not accepted. The county points commercial waste elsewhere.
- DIY and home improvement waste is limited. The county says “we only accept a limited amount” and warns you may be turned away if you exceed its DIY restrictions, which are on its site.
The county’s A to Z of what can and cannot be recycled is the place to check anything unusual before you load the car.
Christmas at the tip
The three closure days are the only ones in the year. Last Christmas the borough council pointed households with extra waste and recycling to the Caxton Way site while the festive bin schedule was running, and reminded them it was shut on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day. Real Christmas trees can be taken there as well as being left with the brown bin. The kerbside arrangements are on our Christmas bin collections page, and the everyday rounds, bank holiday shifts and bin charges on our bin collection days page.
Getting there
The county gives SG1 2DF for the entrance and a map link on its page. For the roads around it, including any closures on the A1(M) or Gunnels Wood Road, see our roadworks and travel page. The county asks visitors to avoid school and bank holidays if they can, to pre-sort waste before arriving, and to treat staff with respect; it says aggression towards staff can lead to prosecution.
Still to be confirmed
- Christmas 2026 hours. The county’s page says only that the site shuts on the three bank holidays. Any early closing on Christmas Eve or New Year’s Eve will be on its page in December.
- Whether the borough council corrects its hours to match the county’s.
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