What is it like to be a waste collector?

"On today's route I think there's 1,306 bins... it's just non-stop straight through," says refuse collector Mitch.

Mitch, who has worked for Teignbridge Council for five years, said he could walk as many as 25,000 steps a day while completing his work.

Council officers set a route which the refuse collectors learn, he said. Their knowledge includes the homes of residents who are elderly or have disabilities and need them to go into the property to collect the bin.

Mitch said the job was what the collectors made of it. "It's a pretty standard job, put the bins on, enjoy the sun, crack on and have a laugh."

One of the issues Mitch said he faced while working was residents placing the wrong things into their bins.

He said items such as "garden waste" and "building stuff" changed the weight of the bin.

"You can feel the difference when you're doing 1,000 bins a day. So we have to look to see what it is."

He said the driver would then take a photo of the item, which they would not remove, and then empty the rest of the bin.

His main advice was to not "overload your bins".

"Don't push your rubbish in so it jams ... try and put it in a bag of some sort and tie it off."

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