Dartford tip on Old Rochester Way opens 8am to 4.30pm, Sundays 9am to 4pm, with a free slot booked first and a digital permit for vans. Checked November 2026.
Dartford tip, the household waste recycling centre on Old Rochester Way, Dartford Heath, opens 8am to 4.30pm Monday to Saturday and 9am to 4pm on Sundays, and you cannot get in without a booked slot. It is run by Kent County Council, not Dartford Borough Council; booking is free and can be done on the day.
Book a slot at Dartford tip on Kent’s booking site, or call 03000 41 73 73, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm.
The quick answer
- Opening times: 8am to 4.30pm Monday to Saturday, 9am to 4pm on Sunday and bank holidays.
- You must book a slot before you go. Book on the same day or up to two weeks ahead, as many visits a day as you need, at no cost.
- Address: Old Rochester Way, Dartford Heath, Dartford DA1 3QU. There is a 2 metre height barrier.
- Vans need a free digital permit as well as a booking. Kent aims to process applications within 28 working days, so apply well before you need to go.
All of the above is from Kent County Council’s Dartford household waste recycling centre page, read on 25 September 2026 and rechecked on 10 November 2026.
Last checked 10 November 2026 against Kent County Council’s site page, booking page, booking form, charges page and vehicle permit pages.
Updated 6 November 2026: the digital permit for vans is now live and Kent has opened applications; we have added how to apply and how long it takes. Kent is also asking people not to bring fridges or freezers unless they have to. Vans and fridges below.
Opening times
| Day | Open |
|---|---|
| Monday to Saturday | 8am to 4.30pm |
| Sunday | 9am to 4pm |
| Bank holidays | 9am to 4pm |
The council’s page lists one set of hours, with no separate winter timetable.
How to book
Kent County Council’s booking page says entry without a booking is not permitted. The booking form itself is on a separate Kent site. What you need to know:
- Same day or up to two weeks ahead. There is no limit on how many times you can visit in a day.
- Bring the booking reference on your phone, printed, or written down, plus a digital permit if you drive a van or other restricted vehicle.
- No internet? Call Kent on 03000 41 73 73, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm.
You cannot walk waste into the site, and children must stay in the car.
Who can use it, and what it costs
Dartford residents pay nothing to visit. The old Dartford permit scheme ended on 1 April 2023, and residents no longer need to show a permit or ID; the booking system does the job instead.
That matters if you live just over the border in London: anyone who does not pay council tax to a Kent council pays £10 per visit, and the council says that includes Medway residents (Kent County Council).
Most household rubbish and recycling is free. DIY waste is free within a limit, and charged above it:
| Item | Free limit | Charge above the limit |
|---|---|---|
| Tyres (car and motorbike) | None | £3 per tyre, up to 5 a day |
| DIY waste (rubble, soil, bricks, tiles, bathroom ceramics) | 4 visits in 4 weeks, 1 large item or 2 bags per visit | £5 per item or black bag |
| Plasterboard | 4 visits in 4 weeks, 1 large item or 2 bags per visit | £7.50 per sheet or black bag |
Payment is by card only; the council does not take cash or cheques. Plastic kitchen units, non-ceramic sinks, baths and doors have no limit and no charge. Business waste is not accepted at all.
Vans at Dartford tip: you now need a digital permit
The 2 metre (6 foot 6 inch) height barrier stops vans, tall 4x4s and cars with roof boxes. Since Wednesday 4 November 2026, any restricted vehicle that is allowed in needs a Kent digital permit. Kent County Council’s vehicle restrictions and permits pages, read on 6 November 2026, say:
- The permit is free. Apply on Kent’s website, or call 03000 41 73 73, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm, if you cannot use the online form.
- It is not instant. Kent reviews every application and aims to decide within 28 working days, then emails you the outcome.
- Most permits allow 12 visits in 12 months. The permit is tied to the registration number, and a visit comes off it each time you go. It lasts until the visits are used or six years after you applied, whichever is sooner.
- You still have to book a slot. The booking system checks the registration for a valid permit and confirms it with your booking reference. Kent’s booking form warns that a restricted vehicle without one may be refused entry.
- Paper vouchers you already hold are accepted until 31 January 2027. New paper vouchers are no longer issued.
- One vehicle per household. If you have two vans, you can only apply for one of them.
Vehicles that need a permit: panel vans; car-derived vans with panels instead of windows or no rear seats; people carriers, 4x4s or minibuses with panels instead of windows or no rear seats; minibuses with 10 or more seats; and campervans, minibuses and disability-adapted vehicles over 2 metres tall. You must live in Kent, and the vehicle must be the only one in your household and weigh under 3.5 tonnes.
Vehicles turned away altogether: anything over 2 metres tall including a roof rack or roof box (apart from the campervans, minibuses and adapted vehicles above), hire vans, tippers and drop-sided lorries, horseboxes and agricultural trailers, and anything over 3.5 tonnes gross.
Trailers: a car that does not need a permit can tow a trailer whose body is no more than 2.05 metres long, stays hitched unless staff say otherwise, and has no built-up sides. A vehicle that needs a permit cannot bring a trailer.
If you drive a campervan, minibus or adapted vehicle over 2 metres: Kent’s permit terms say a fixed height barrier means these vehicles cannot use the Sevenoaks, Swanley or Faversham tips. Dartford is not on that list, and Kent tells you how to get in when it approves the permit. Describe any adaptations in the “extra information” box when you apply.
Fridges and freezers
Kent is asking residents not to bring fridges or freezers to its tips unless it is absolutely necessary. Its booking form, read on 6 November 2026, says disposal capacity across Kent “is currently very limited due to a national issue” and that “there is a possibility we may not be able to accept them at this time”. Its July news release said the tips “remain open and continue to accept fridges and freezers” (Kent County Council, 24 July 2026), but the booking form warning is newer, so a wasted trip is possible. If you must get rid of one, call 03000 41 73 73 before you book. Dartford Borough Council’s bulky collection is no help here: it is not taking fridges or freezers either, for the same reason (see Dartford bin collection days).
Christmas and New Year
Kent’s only published rule is its bank holiday line: 9am to 4pm. The bank holidays this Christmas are Friday 25 December, Monday 28 December (the substitute for Boxing Day, which falls on a Saturday) and Friday 1 January 2027 (GOV.UK).
Kent does not say separately whether the tips open on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. Last Christmas its festive services page simply told residents to “check the opening times for your nearest household waste recycling centre over the festive period” (Kent County Council, archived 29 December 2025). The reliable test is the booking system: if there is no slot to book on a date, you cannot get in that day.
Christmas trees are not taken by the council’s brown bin garden waste subscription, so the tip is the obvious place for one. Bin dates over the holiday are on our Dartford Christmas bin collections page, and your usual days on Dartford bin collection days.
Getting there, and the nearest other tip
The site is on Old Rochester Way, Dartford Heath, DA1 3QU. The nearest other Kent site is Swanley, at the Teardrop Centre (Pedham Place), A20 London Road, BR8 8TJ, with the same hours (8am to 4.30pm Monday to Saturday, 9am to 4pm Sunday and bank holidays), the same 2 metre barrier and the same booking rule (Kent County Council). Road closures that affect the route are on our Dartford roadworks and travel page.
Frequently asked questions
What time does Dartford tip open? 8am to 4.30pm Monday to Saturday and 9am to 4pm on Sundays and bank holidays. There is no separate winter timetable.
Do I need to book Dartford tip? Yes. Kent County Council says entry without a booking is not permitted. Booking is free, can be for the same day or up to two weeks ahead, and there is no limit on visits in a day.
Can I take a van to Dartford tip? Only with a Kent digital permit, and only if the van is no more than 2 metres tall and under 3.5 tonnes. The permit is free but Kent takes up to 28 working days to approve it, and most permits allow 12 visits a year. Paper vouchers you already hold work until 31 January 2027. Hire vans are never allowed.
Can I take a fridge to Dartford tip? Kent is asking people not to bring fridges or freezers unless they have to, because it may not be able to accept them at the moment. Call 03000 41 73 73 before you book.
Can Bexley residents use Dartford tip? Yes, but anyone who does not pay council tax to a Kent council pays £10 a visit, and still has to book.
What is still to be confirmed
- Christmas Day and New Year’s Day opening. We will check Kent’s pages and the booking system in early December and update this section.
- When fridges and freezers are accepted normally again. Kent has given no date; we will update this page when it lifts the request.
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