UK waste compliance templates,
free for your business to download.

The Waste Duty of Care Code of Practice sets out what the written description of waste has to contain. On the standard form that means:

• An accurate description of the waste, with its EWC code

  The classification code from the List of Wastes (also called the European Waste Catalogue). “General waste” is not a description; “mixed municipal waste, 20 03 01” is.

• Quantity and containment

  How much waste there is, whether it is loose or in a container, and the container type - skip, bags, drum.

• Time, date and place of transfer

  When and where the waste changed hands.

• Both parties' names, addresses and signatures

  Transferor and transferee. Electronic signatures are fine, as long as an enforcement officer can view them.

• The capacity each party is acting in, and their authorisation

  Producer, importer, registered waste carrier, broker or dealer - plus the matching permit or registration number. Where a broker or dealer is involved, their registration number goes on the note too.

• The transferor's SIC code

  The 2007 Standard Industrial Classification code of the business the waste came from.

• The waste hierarchy declaration

  A statement confirming the duty to apply the waste hierarchy under regulation 12 of the Waste (England and Wales) Regulations 2011 has been met. It is printed on the form - it still needs to be true.

A transfer note is only for non-hazardous waste - hazardous movements need the consignment note above instead. Unsure which side of the line your waste sits? Look the code up in the EWC code finder. And note the duty of care paperwork applies to businesses, not householders - domestic collections work differently.