Sixfields and Farthinghoe have a reuse lane you can drive straight into. The other four need a booked slot, and none of the six lets you walk in on foot.
All six of West Northamptonshire’s household waste recycling centres now collect baby clothes and equipment for a Northampton charity. The council announced the scheme on 27 August with FCC Environment and Baby Basics Northampton, and says signs are going up on site to show residents where to leave things.
What the announcement does not say is that the six sites do not work the same way. Two of them let you drive straight in. The other four will turn you away without a booking.
Which sites need a booking
Baby Basics Northampton lists all six on its own donation points page, and it is the only place the difference is spelled out.
| Recycling centre | Address | Booking |
|---|---|---|
| Northampton, Sixfields | Walter Tull Way, NN5 5QL | Not needed, use the reuse lane |
| Farthinghoe | near Brackley, NN13 5PB | Not needed, use the reuse lane |
| Northampton, Ecton Lane | Lower Ecton Lane, Great Billing, NN3 5HQ | Book a slot |
| Brixworth | Scaldwell Road, NN6 9YE | Book a slot |
| Daventry | Browns Road, off Staverton Road, NN11 4NS | Book a slot |
| Towcester | Old Greens, Norton Road, NN12 8AX | Book a slot |
All six open 10am to 4pm, seven days a week. Sixfields and Farthinghoe are the two sites with reuse shops, which is why they are exempt: the council’s own pages for both carry the line “You do not need a booking to donate or purchase from the shop.”
The rules at the other four
The council’s booking page is blunt: “You must now book before visiting Household Waste Recycling Centres.” The conditions that follow matter for a donation run.
- slots can be booked up to two weeks ahead, and up to 30 minutes before you arrive
- a booking is site specific and cannot be moved to another centre
- car slots last 15 minutes, and the last one of the day is 3.45pm
- you need a West Northamptonshire household address to book
- an ANPR barrier reads your registration, so arriving well outside your slot may not get you in
Booking is free, online at any hour, or on 0300 126 7000 between 9am and 5pm on weekdays.
One rule applies at all six, reuse lane or not. Every site page carries the same sentence: “there is no pedestrian access.” You cannot walk in with a bag. If you have no car, the pages ask you to email or ring two days before your intended visit to arrange something else.
What the charity will actually take
The council lists four categories: baby clothes aged 0 to 3 months, new and unopened nappies, wipes and toiletries, moses baskets, baby baths and non electrical sterilisers, and blankets and bedding for a moses basket.
Baby Basics publishes a longer and stricter list of its own, and that is the one to read before you load the boot. Its things we can’t accept page rules out much of what people assume is welcome:
- cots, cot beds, next to me cribs and nursery furniture
- moses basket stands, even though the baskets themselves are wanted
- prams, buggies, car seats, baby carriers and slings
- stair gates, baby bouncers and play mats
- clothing aged 3 to 6 months and older, and anything ripped, stained, faded or bobbled
- open packets of nappies or wipes, dummies, breast pumps, baby medicines and out of date goods
Its accepted donations page asks for things the council’s summary leaves out, including brand new toiletries for the mother: shampoo, shower gel, toothpaste, breast pads and maternity towels. Coats, snowsuits and jumpers are taken up to six months, where everything else stops at three.
Where else you can drop things off
The recycling centres are new. The charity has run drop off points for years, and several are easier to reach than a tip. Times below are from the charity’s own page, which was updated on 31 August.
- Abington Parish Rooms, Park Avenue North, NN3 2HT: 10am to 3pm on the first Saturday of the month, which this month is Saturday 5 September
- The Emmanuel Group of Churches, 49 Weston Favell Centre, NN3 8JR: Monday 10am to 1pm, Tuesday to Friday 10am to 2pm
- St Lawrence Church, Chantry Lane, Towcester, NN12 6YY: every day, 9.30am to 5pm
- St Bartholomew’s Church, Greens Norton, NN12 8BL: every day, 9.30am to 5pm
- SNVB, The Riverside Centre, Islington Road, Towcester, NN12 6AU: Monday to Thursday, 9am to 4pm
Two Northampton points are shut for now. The charity’s page says the Kairos Centre at Grange Park and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Harlestone Road in Duston are both closed until Tuesday 8 September. The page also asks that nothing is left outside any drop off point.
Who the donations go to
Baby Basics Northampton is registered charity number 1168449 and works from the Royal Pavilion at Moulton. Volunteers pack a moses basket of clothing, toiletries and equipment and pass it on through midwives, health visitors and other professionals, so families are referred rather than walking in.
Gemma Stammers, the charity’s operations coordinator, is quoted in the council’s announcement saying demand “continues to grow with 1 in 14 babies born in the county receiving a starter pack from our charity”. That figure is the charity’s own.
Cllr Nigel Stansfield, the council’s cabinet member for environment, recycling and waste, said the partnership “shows how small actions can make a big difference”.
What it means for you
If you have newborn clothes, a moses basket or an unopened pack of nappies in a cupboard, this is somewhere useful for them to go. Do two things first. Check the charity’s reject list, because a cot or a pram will be refused. Then check which site you are heading for: Sixfields and Farthinghoe take you without a booking, the other four do not.
If you are in Abington, this Saturday is the one day this month the Parish Rooms are open for it.
For everyday collections, see our Northampton bin collection days page, and check Northampton roadworks and travel before driving across town.
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