Construction waste disposal: segregation, tax and site exemptions

Construction is the UK's largest waste stream and also its best performing, with over 95% recovered. The gap between a site that segregates and one that does not is almost entirely a tax and gate fee gap.

Construction waste: key facts

England, 2024	63.3 million tonnes of non-hazardous construction and demolition waste, 60.3 million recovered, a 95.3% recovery rate
Landfill tax, 2026 to 2027	£130.75 per tonne standard, £8.65 lower rate
Wales	Same rates, plus £196.15 for unauthorised disposals, set at 150% of the standard rate
Who pays the tax	The landfill site operator, who passes it on in the gate fee
Site waste management plans	Repealed in England on 1 December 2013. Wales never had them
Reusing on site	The U1 exemption allows up to 5,000 tonnes of concrete, brick and aggregate

Site waste management plans are gone

Worth clearing up because it still appears in tender documents. The Site Waste Management Plans Regulations 2008 applied to England only, covering projects over £300,000 with extra duties above £500,000. They were revoked on 1 December 2013 and are not law anywhere in the UK. Wales never had them, so anyone saying they still apply in Wales is mistaken.

What replaced them is nothing specific and everything general: the duty of care under section 34 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990, the duty to apply the waste hierarchy under regulation 12, and transfer notes for every movement. Many clients and principal contractors still require a site waste management plan contractually, which is a commercial requirement rather than a legal one.

Why segregation is a tax decision

Landfill tax for 2026 to 2027 is £130.75 per tonne at the standard rate and £8.65 at the lower rate. That gap is the whole argument for segregating a skip.

The lower rate applies only to materials listed in the Landfill Tax (Qualifying Material) Order 2011, which covers eight groups: rocks and soils, ceramic or concrete materials, minerals, furnace slags, ash, low activity inorganic compounds, calcium sulphate, and calcium hydroxide and brine. Crucially, the material must not contain or be contaminated with anything not on that list.

So a skip of clean brick and concrete attracts the lower rate. The same skip with timber offcuts, plasterboard and packaging thrown in attracts the standard rate on the entire weight. One bag of rubbish in a tonne of inert hardcore multiplies the tax on that tonne by roughly fifteen.

Note also that the lower rate has risen sharply, from £4.05 in 2025 to 2026, deliberately, to narrow the gap and discourage sending inert material to landfill at all.

The streams worth separating

Metal. The one stream that reliably pays rather than costs: rebar, pipe, cable, ducting, structural steel, radiators, copper and brass fittings. It should never be in a mixed skip.
Clean hardcore. Brick, block and concrete, crushable for reuse or at worst lower rate landfill.
Clean timber. Chippable, and banned from landfill altogether in Wales.
Cardboard and packaging film. Real value in quantity on a large site.
Plasterboard. Must be kept separate from biodegradable waste; it is not an inert material and causes problems in mixed landfill.
Hazardous waste. Asbestos, contaminated soils, paints, solvents, oils and batteries each have their own route, a consignment note rather than a transfer note, and a three year retention period.

Reusing material on site

Often the cheapest option available, and there is a registered exemption designed for it. The U1 exemption allows suitable waste to be used in construction, including repairing, altering, maintaining or improving buildings and sites, creating noise bunds, building tracks, paths and bridleways, drainage works and landscaping as part of a construction project.

The limits are generous: up to 5,000 tonnes of concrete, bricks, tiles, aggregates and crushed rock for any construction activity; 1,000 tonnes of soil and stones; 1,000 tonnes of processed waste for building tracks, paths, bridleways or car parks; and up to 50,000 tonnes for building roads, which must meet engineering standards.

There is a separate T6 exemption for treating waste wood and plant matter by chipping, shredding, cutting or pulverising, allowing up to 500 tonnes over any seven day period. Registering an exemption with the Environment Agency is free, but each carries conditions, so read them before buying plant rather than after.

The paperwork

Every load leaving site needs a transfer note with the six digit List of Wastes code, the quantity, the time and place, your SIC code, both signatures and confirmation of the waste hierarchy. Keep them two years, or three for hazardous consignment notes. Check every carrier's registration, which begins CBDU, on the Environment Agency public register.

Fly-tipped construction waste traced back to a site is a familiar enforcement route, and the question asked will be whether the carrier was checked and the notes kept. Our directory lists companies collecting metal, wood and other construction materials by postcode.

Metal is the stream that turns a site's waste bill around, and our guide to scrap metal collection covers arranging a collection from site.

Frequently asked questions

Do I still need a site waste management plan?

Not by law. The Site Waste Management Plans Regulations 2008 applied to England only and were revoked on 1 December 2013. Wales never had them. Many clients still require one contractually, which is a commercial requirement rather than a legal one.

How much is landfill tax on construction waste?

For 2026 to 2027 it is £130.75 per tonne at the standard rate and £8.65 at the lower rate. The lower rate applies only to listed inert materials that are not contaminated with anything off the list.

Why does mixing a skip cost so much more?

Because the lower rate applies only to qualifying inert material that is not contaminated with anything else. One bag of general rubbish in a tonne of clean hardcore pushes the whole tonne to the standard rate, roughly fifteen times the tax.

Can I reuse crushed concrete on site?

Yes, under the U1 registered exemption, which allows up to 5,000 tonnes of concrete, bricks, tiles, aggregates and crushed rock to be used in construction activity, with 1,000 tonnes for soil and stones and up to 50,000 tonnes for road building to engineering standards.

Which construction waste stream is worth money?

Metal, reliably: rebar, pipe, cable, ducting, structural steel, radiators and copper or brass fittings. It should never go in a mixed skip.

Sources

Updated 8 October 2026 by Ayo Isinkaye, founder of The Green Alchemist.

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