A new recycle bin that has a lower opening so wheelchair users can use it more easily has been designed for Haringey Council.

The first has been installed in Tottenham for residents at Brookside House retirement housing in Lordship Lane.

“They are much happier now,” council support worker Charles White said. “Everyone can bring out their recycling on collection days.”

The new design came from talks the council had with its Veolia recycling contractors to come up with a solution for people unable to reach the high-level lids.

One wheelchair tenant at Brookside, who spends his spare time turning old plastic bottles into flowerpots, said: “I always had to find someone to help put my recycling in the bin. But this makes my life much easier — I feel independent.”

The design has an opening at shoulder height, which means those in wheelchairs no longer need help from passers-by to lift the lid — or worse, having to rely on dustbin collections that end up in landfill sites.