First Mile celebrates the commercial real estate and office sectors’ top recycling champions
First Mile, the UK’s leading recycling and waste management provider, celebrates the commercial real estate and office sectors’ highest-performing recycling organisations as part of its annual Recycling Standard campaign.
In the past year, First Mile worked with more than 30,000 businesses across the UK, welcoming 8,000 new customers, collecting 207,540 tonnes of waste and recycling 94,128 tonnes. The commercial real estate and office sectors remain a core part of its customer base, with businesses and estates increasing their number of separated waste streams and driving higher recycling rates in response to evolving regulation, environmental targets and employee/tenant expectations.
The top three commercial real estate and office organisations by recycling tonnage are Amazon (Sidekick), which recycled 1,050 tonnes; Grosvenor, which recycled 1013 tonnes; and The Net-A-Porter Group Ltd, which recycled 556 tonnes. Together, these companies represent the highest-volume recyclers in the First Mile network, demonstrating the scale of impact that consistent, data-driven recycling can deliver across offices and managed buildings nationwide.
Managing waste in these environments involves a wide range of materials, from desk-side paper and packaging to confidential documents and electronics. First Mile supports customers with collections for paper and cardboard, plastics, glass, metal, coffee cups, food waste, batteries and WEEE, alongside secure shredding and confidential disposal. Flexible collections, clear signage and dedicated internal bins help reduce contamination and ensure materials are separated correctly, while digital reporting supports compliance with regulations such as the 2025 Simpler Recycling reforms.
For more than a decade, First Mile’s Recycling Standard has provided a transparent and evidence-led framework for measuring recycling performance. Grounded in verified data collected throughout the year and benchmarked across tens of thousands of UK businesses, the Standard enables office occupiers and estate managers to compare performance, identify opportunities for improvement and gain recognition for measurable progress. In 2026, the campaign evolves into an enhanced recognition scheme, positioning itself as a key annual moment for UK recycling and setting clear, sector-specific benchmarks.
Within the scheme, accreditation levels are awarded based on verified recycling rates and the number of services used. Gold-accredited customers achieve an 80 per cent or higher recycling rate alongside four or more services, or three or more services where one of these is food recycling. One of these services must be general waste, which is required to be zero to landfill. Silver accreditation recognises organisations achieving a recycling rate of 50 per cent or above with at least two services. Zero to Landfill status is awarded to customers with recycling rates of up to 49 per cent whose general waste is diverted from landfill.
Gold-performing commercial real estate and office sectors typically implement clear recycling systems across floors and communal spaces, invest in staff education on waste separation, and monitor progress with detailed data. They also comply with the government’s Simpler Recycling regulations, which came into effect in April 2025 and require all workplaces to separate dry recyclables, food waste and residual waste.
Bruce Bratley, First Mile founder and CEO, said: “Offices and managed buildings have a vital role to play in improving the UK’s recycling performance. These premises often handle a diverse range of materials, from paper and packaging to electronics and food waste. Our Recycling Standard is built on real operational data, giving organisations a clear picture of performance and a credible way to demonstrate progress. It is fantastic to see Amazon, Grosvenor and The Net-A-Porter Group setting the benchmark for the office and managed building sectors.”
The Recycling Standard’s position as an industry benchmark follows a period of strong external recognition for First Mile, including being named Independent Operator of the Year at the National Recycling Awards 2025 for the second-year running, and B2B Business of the Year at the Growing Business Awards 2025.
