The Bring Your Own Bag scheme aims to reduce plastic bag consumption in east london borough of Waltham Forest. The scheme hopes to raise awareness of the environmental damage that plastic bags cause.

Local shops and traders are being asked to replace traditional plastic carrier bags with reusable or biodegradable alternatives.

How it works

If you run a business in Waltham Forest please do get in touch with us. We'd love to talk to you about the scheme and to show what reusable alternatives there are out there.

If you are a resident in the borough and you would like to help us promote the scheme please contact us.

Email us here.

Why Waltham Forest?


Why not? Take a look at the gallery and see for yourself the damage being done by discarded plastic bags in East London. The streets are littered with them, the trees and bushes in our green spaces are covered with them. It is time to stop ruining our environment.

We use an average of around 300 plastic bags per person in the UK. We use them for an average of 12-20 minutes before disposing of them.

But it can take over 100 years for a plastic bag to degrade.

It is now thought that an average cloth bag in its lifetime will save the owner from using at least 1000 plastic bags.

Last year London Councils announced plans to intoduce a levy on plastic bag usage in the capital. This could take 18 months or more to come into effect. We don't think we should wait until then.

See our plastic facts section to find out more about the damage the simple plastic bag can do.