On 1 April 2026, Brighton & Hove City Council changed how it collects sofas. They now go on a separate round from beds, fridges and wardrobes, and they have their own price on the council's list. Add charity condition checks and fire-label requirements, and the ID and vehicle rules at the tip, and an old sofa can end up sitting in the hallway for weeks. This guide goes through the five realistic routes for an old sofa in Brighton and Hove, using the council's own published rules, so you can pick the right one before you lift anything.
Five ways to get rid of a sofa in Brighton and Hove
The five routes are selling or giving it away, donating it, the council's bulky waste collection, taking it to the tip, and a licensed man and van. The right one depends on the sofa's condition, where it is in the house and how soon it has to go.
- Sell it or give it away. Free, and the buyer does the carrying. Check its condition and any fire-label requirements before arranging reuse.
- Donate it. Free, and some charities collect. Check their condition and fire-label requirements before arranging collection.
- Council bulky waste collection. £45 for a sofa or sofa bed, £35 for an armchair. A three to four week wait, and the crew will not come inside past the front door.
- The tip. Free for city residents, but you need ID, a vehicle the site will let in and someone to help you lift.
- A licensed man and van. The agreed collection can include carrying it out of the room. Send the access details and your preferred date for a job-specific quote.
If you are buying a new sofa, ask the shop at checkout whether it will take the old one away on delivery, what that costs and where it goes. It saves a second trip down the stairs, but not every retailer offers it, and it usually has to be booked with the order rather than on the day.
The council collection: £45 a sofa, and a month's wait
Brighton & Hove City Council charges £45 to collect a sofa or sofa bed and £35 for an armchair. Sofas are priced on their own list, not inside the council's usual one-to-six item bundle, and slots are booking three to four weeks ahead.
You book by calling 01273 292 929, Monday to Friday between 9:30am and 1:30pm, with a description of each item, your full address and a debit card. The council says on 1 October 2026 that high demand means slots are three to four weeks away, so if the new sofa is arriving sooner, the old one has to live somewhere in the meantime. A three-piece suite of a sofa and two armchairs comes to £115 at those rates.
Corner sofas and sofa beds
A corner sofa usually comes apart into two or three sections, and a sofa bed carries a heavy metal frame inside it. Describe exactly what you have when you book, including how many pieces it comes in, because the council can refuse anything that does not match the description on the call. If in doubt, ask whether a sectional sofa counts as one item or several before you pay.
Where it has to be on the day
The crew collects from your driveway, your front or back garden, or just inside the front door if you have no outside space. It will not come upstairs or into the living room. And the council is blunt about the pavement: never leave a sofa on the road or pavement, even for a booked collection, because it counts as fly-tipping and can bring a £400 fine. Our comparison of the council service and a man and van goes through the rest of the council's rules.
Selling or donating: the fire label decides
For charity collection, check that the sofa is in good condition and has its permanent fire safety label. The British Heart Foundation does not accept upholstered items without one. Check the receiving organisation's rules before offering it for reuse.
Look under the seat cushions and along the base or the back of the frame for a sewn-in label that mentions fire resistance. The British Heart Foundation's list of items it cannot accept includes upholstered items without fire safety labels and anything in poor condition. Check the requirements of any other charity before booking its collection. The government's guidance on reusing upholstered seating sets out when a used sofa can be passed on rather than treated as waste: it must be used as a sofa again, need no more than minor repair, and keep to the law, including carrying the right fire safety label.
Where to try first in Brighton and Hove
The council's recycling A to Z suggests two options for furniture in good condition: giving it away on Freegle, and taking it to the reuse shop at the Hove recycling site, where it is sold on. Facebook Marketplace and Gumtree are other places to advertise a sofa that is suitable for reuse. There is no guarantee of finding a taker before your deadline. Mark it collection only, so the buyer brings the muscle. Our guide to getting rid of old furniture in Brighton and Hove has more on selling and donating.
Which route fits your sofa
| Your sofa | Best first try | Fallback |
|---|---|---|
| Good condition, fire label attached | Freegle, Marketplace or a charity collection | Hove reuse shop |
| Worn, stained or no fire label, ground floor, no rush | Council collection | The tip, if it fits your vehicle |
| Upstairs, or needs to go before a date | Licensed man and van | Council, if you can get it outside |
| Part of a bigger clear-out | One man and van load for everything | Several council bookings |
Taking it to the tip yourself
Brighton and Hove's two household waste recycling sites take furniture free from city residents, but you need ID showing a city address and a vehicle the site will let in. Luton vans, box vans, tippers, flatbeds and signwritten work vans are all refused.
The Hove site is on Modbury Way, off Old Shoreham Road, open 8am to 4:30pm on weekdays, 8:30am to 1:30pm on Saturdays and 10:30am to 1:30pm on Sundays. The Brighton site is off Wilson Avenue, BN2 5PA, open 8am to 4:30pm on weekdays and 9am to 5pm at weekends and on bank holidays. Check the council's site page on the day, as hours change.
The council's access rules ask for a photo driving licence showing your Brighton & Hove address plus proof of residence from the last three months if you come by car, or two forms of ID if you come in a van. A hired van needs its rental agreement. Trailers up to 1.2 metres are allowed at Hove, and not at all at Brighton.
The honest problem with the tip
Many sofas will not fit in an ordinary car. Measure the sofa and the available loading space before arranging transport. So the free option usually means hiring a van that the site will accept, finding someone to help carry it, and getting it down the stairs and round the turn in the hallway yourself. Take the feet off first, measure the doorways, and wrap it if it is raining: a wet fabric sofa is noticeably heavier than a dry one.
When a man and van is the simpler route
A licensed man and van is usually the simplest option when the sofa is upstairs, when it has to go before a set date, or when it is going with other furniture or rubbish. The lifting is included and the sofa is collected from the room it is in.
Brighton's converted terraces and flats above shops have narrow, turning staircases, and a sofa that came up in pieces or through a window a decade ago rarely wants to go back down. With a man and van collection, getting it out of the room, down the stairs and onto the van is part of the job. A new sofa being delivered, a key handover or a house move all come with a date attached, and a four-week council slot does not always fit.
How the price is worked out
Rather than a price per item, a rubbish collection is priced on how much space the load takes in the van and how much effort it takes to get it there: which floor it is on, how tight the stairs are, and whether there is parking near the door. A two-seater from a ground-floor flat is a very different job from a corner sofa down four flights. Send a photo, your postcode and the floor, and you get a clear price before anything is moved. Our guide to what drives the cost of a clearance explains each factor.
Check who you are handing it to
Check a collector before handing over the sofa. If you fail to take reasonable steps to use an authorised carrier, the government's duty of care guidance lets the council fine you, with fixed penalties from £150 to £600. Ask for their waste carrier number and look it up on the Environment Agency public register. Right Turn Removals is registered under licence CBDU621046, and our guide to checking a collector is legal shows how to do it in thirty seconds.
When the sofa is only the start
The sofa is often just the first thing on the list. If it is going with the contents of a flat or a whole house, ask for one quote covering the complete house clearance rather than assuming separate item collections cover the whole job.
Getting rid of a sofa: FAQ
How much does it cost to get rid of a sofa in Brighton?
As of October 2026, Brighton & Hove City Council charges £45 to collect a sofa or sofa bed and £35 for an armchair, booked by phone on 01273 292 929. Taking it to one of the city's household waste recycling sites yourself is free for residents, and selling or donating costs nothing if it is in good condition. A licensed man and van prices on the job, based on the floor, the access and what else is going, so send a photo for a quote.
Will the council collect a sofa from upstairs?
No. Brighton & Hove City Council collects from your driveway, your front or back garden, or just inside the front door if you have no outside space. You have to get the sofa there yourself before the crew arrives, and it must never be left on the road or pavement, which counts as fly-tipping and can bring a £400 fine.
Will a charity take my old sofa in Brighton?
Only if it is in good condition and still has its permanent fire safety label, usually sewn under the seat cushions or on the base. Charities such as the British Heart Foundation cannot accept upholstered furniture without one. The council also suggests Freegle, and the Hove recycling site has a reuse shop for furniture in good condition.
Can I take a sofa to the tip in Brighton and Hove?
Yes, if you live in the city and can get it there. The Hove site is on Modbury Way and the Brighton site is off Wilson Avenue. You need photo ID showing a Brighton & Hove address and recent proof of residence, or two forms of ID in a van. Luton and box vans, tippers, flatbeds and signwritten business vans are refused, and the Brighton site takes no trailers.
What should I ask someone who offers to take my sofa away?
Ask for their waste carrier registration number and check it on the Environment Agency public register, and ask where the sofa will go. If you fail to take reasonable steps to use an authorised carrier, the council can issue a fixed penalty of £150 to £600 for breaching your household waste duty of care.
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Sources, checked 1 October 2026: Brighton & Hove City Council, get your large and electrical household items collected; Brighton & Hove City Council, recycling A to Z; Brighton & Hove City Council, our household waste recycling sites; Brighton & Hove City Council, how to access our household waste recycling sites; GOV.UK, reusing upholstered domestic seating containing POPs; British Heart Foundation, items we cannot accept; GOV.UK, household waste duty of care fixed penalty guidance; Environment Agency, waste carriers and brokers register. Council prices, wait times and site rules change, so confirm them with the council before you book or visit.