Almost 70% of waste found in an average household rubbish bin could have been recycled, say North Tyneside Council officers.

Council officers have warned against the "take, make, and waste" model and mentality as figures reveal a struggle nationally and locally to increase recycling. According to statistics compiled by several local councils, only 31% of items in the average household rubbish bin are not suitable for recycling.

The breakdown of the contents of the average non-recycling bin are:

• Mostly edible food waste - 29%
• Containers (plastic, glass, cans, cartons) - 8%
• Textiles - 3%
• Wood and scrap metal - 8%
• Paper and cardboard - 7%
• Garden waste - 5%
• Batteries and electricals - 1%
• Plastic film and bags - 8%

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In addition, local data shows that recycling collections make up just 35% of all rubbish collections in North Tyneside. A figure which has remained roughly stagnant, council officers say, for several years.

North Tyneside Council's environmental sustainability manager, Annaliese Allen-Norris said: "We are taking resources from the ground to make products that we use for a very short period. A new phone comes out, we ditch the old one.

"Your shirt gets a hole in it, and you buy a cheap replacement. It is a take, make, waste linear system and it cannot work in the long term if we need to get recycling up and total waste down".

However, it is hoped new food waste bins, due to be rolled out in 2026, will help tackle the food waste issue. Ms Allen-Norris also stated the council needs to encourage a 'make-do and mend' attitude to help bring total waste down.

The financial cost of the lack of recycling to North Tyneside Council was also laid bare in the data shared with councillors last night. It costs the local authority around £131 per tonne to dispose of plastic by non-recyclable means.

North Tyneside Council stands to save around £500,000 a year if recyclable material is put in the correct bins and sent to recycling centres. In addition, more recyclable materials would be free to be sent off to generate green electricity for the national grid.