Islington's Hornsey Street tip opens 8am to 8pm Monday to Saturday, 8.30am Sundays, and closes only on Christmas Day and New Year's Day. Vans must book.
Islington’s only tip is the Reuse and Recycling Centre at 40 Hornsey Street, N7 8HU, near Holloway Road. It opens 8am to 8pm Monday to Saturday and 8.30am to 8pm on Sundays and bank holidays, and it is closed on only two days a year: Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.
The site is run by the North London Waste Authority (NLWA), not by Islington Council, and all the detail below comes from the NLWA’s Hornsey Street page and its site rules, read on 25 September 2026.
The quick answer
- Open 8am to 8pm Monday to Saturday, 8.30am to 8pm Sundays and bank holidays. Closed on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day only, so it is open on Boxing Day.
- Cars do not need to book. Vans, trailers and cars with the back seats removed do, at least 24 hours ahead, with proof of residency.
- No walking or cycling onto the site. There is a separate drop-off point at the Hornsey Street entrance, and it takes a shorter list of items.
Opening hours
| Day | Hours |
|---|---|
| Monday to Saturday | 8am to 8pm |
| Sunday and bank holidays | 8.30am to 8pm |
| Christmas Day, 25 December | Closed |
| New Year's Day, 1 January | Closed |
The NLWA says the site may shut for short spells during opening hours while containers are moved or changed. Arrive in good time: if you turn up close to closing with a lot to unload, or behind a queue, you will not be let in. The authority gives two cut-offs in different places, 15 minutes on the Hornsey Street page and 10 minutes on its general site rules page, so treat 15 minutes as the safe margin.
Christmas and New Year 2026
On the published hours, the Christmas fortnight looks like this. These dates follow the NLWA’s standing rule; it has not issued a separate 2026 notice.
- Thursday 24 December: 8am to 8pm
- Friday 25 December: closed
- Saturday 26 December: 8am to 8pm
- Monday 28 December (Boxing Day bank holiday): 8.30am to 8pm
- Thursday 31 December: 8am to 8pm
- Friday 1 January 2027: closed
Real and plastic Christmas trees and Christmas tree lights are all on the site’s list of accepted items. For the council’s free kerbside tree collection in January and the park drop-off points, see Islington Christmas bin collections.
Who needs to book
Cars and people carriers can turn up without booking. You need a booking through the NLWA van booking system if you are coming in:
- a van, or a car towing a trailer
- a “stripped” vehicle with no seats in the back, including minibuses with seats removed, stripped campervans and crew-cab pick-ups
Bookings must be made at least 24 hours ahead, you must bring proof of residency such as a utility bill, and each north London resident is allowed six van bookings a year. A hire van needs the hire agreement with it. Caged tippers and flatbed trucks are not allowed at all. Wheelchair accessible vehicles do not need to book.
There is a 1.75m height barrier. It is opened for taller cars and for booked vans.
On foot or by bike
Hornsey Street is the one north London tip with no pedestrian or cycle access onto the site itself. Instead there is a drop-off point at the Hornsey Street depot entrance, open during the same hours (Islington Council).
It cannot take:
- general household rubbish or mixed household recycling
- large appliances or large items of furniture
- paint, cooking oil, gas bottles and canisters, household or garden chemicals, or other hazardous waste including asbestos
- light bulbs, fluorescent tubes and commercial batteries
- soil, rubble or tyres
Those items can still come in a vehicle. For everyday recycling on foot, the NLWA points to the public recycling bank on the corner of Caledonian Road and Cottage Road, opposite Caledonian Road tube station.
Limits on rubble and DIY waste
Each north London household can bring DIY waste that fits into two 50-litre bags, four times in any four-week period. That includes concrete, bricks, stones, pebbles, sand and gravel.
- Asbestos: cement-bonded asbestos is accepted, but only by appointment. Email hornseystrandr@londonenergyltd.com or call 07557 205 292, and bring it double-wrapped in thick polythene and sealed with tape.
- Paint: leftover water-based paint is taken for reuse, and residents can take reuse paint away free. Solvent-based paint is treated as hazardous.
- Hard plastics: still accepted, but the NLWA has stopped recycling them for lack of UK processing capacity, so they go for energy recovery with general waste.
- Trade waste is not accepted at any NLWA site.
Before you go
- Sort your load by type before you arrive, and do not throw items into containers.
- Only two people should leave the car on site; keep children and dogs in the vehicle.
- Staff will help disabled visitors unload if you bring proof of disability.
- Furniture in good condition goes to the NLWA reuse shop at the Kings Road site in Waltham Forest.
The site phone number is 020 7464 2225. For kerbside collections, garden waste and bulky waste charges, see Islington bin collection days. For the roads around Holloway Road, check Islington roadworks and travel and parking in Islington.
Still to be confirmed
The NLWA publishes no separate Christmas notice for Hornsey Street; the hours above come from its standing opening-hours table. We will re-check the page in early December.
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