Contents

1. The Wimbledon pilot: what's happening this week
2. How the pilot works — and what it's testing
3. £60m retailer grants confirmed: what small businesses need to know
4. The return handling fee: 3p manual, 5p RVM
5. October 2027: the DRS timeline
6. What it means for businesses now
7. Sources

The Wimbledon pilot: what's happening this week

The collaboration brings together Evian — the Official Water of The Championships — the All England Lawn Tennis Club, and Exchange for Change to run a fully operational DRS pilot at a major public event. Spectators at the Qualifying Competition can purchase Evian 75cl plastic bottles on-site, with a 20p deposit added at the point of purchase. That deposit is returned when the empty bottle is fed into a reverse vending machine on site.

The pilot is designed to test how reverse vending machines perform in a live event setting — measuring return rates, consumer usability, machine throughput, and logistical requirements — before the national rollout. Deposits not claimed by spectators will be donated to the Wimbledon Foundation.

"The Deposit Return Scheme is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to create a significant and long-lasting shift in the UK's recycling behaviour. The insights gained from this pilot, as well as others taking place over the coming months, will help ensure the Scheme is designed to be as efficient and consumer friendly as possible."

Kate McFerran, Corporate Affairs Director, Exchange for Change

How the pilot works — and what it's testing

The Wimbledon pilot mirrors exactly how the national DRS will operate from October 2027. A consumer purchases a drink in an eligible container. A 20p deposit is automatically added to the price at point of sale. The consumer returns the empty container to a reverse vending machine. The machine verifies the container — confirming it is in scope, intact, and correctly identified — and issues a 20p refund, either as cash, a digital credit, or a charity donation.

The insights Exchange for Change is gathering at Wimbledon will feed directly into the technical and operational design of the national scheme — covering everything from RVM software performance to consumer behaviour at the point of return. Additional pilots are planned at other events over the coming months before the October 2027 launch.

"Circularity is a core commitment of our Impact Journey strategy, and we are proud to support The All England Lawn Tennis Club and Exchange for Change in delivering this first-of-its-kind pilot ahead of the UK Deposit Return Scheme's national rollout next year."

Hannah Cornick, Sustainability & Social Impact Director, Danone North Europe

£60m retailer grants confirmed: what small businesses need to know

Exchange for Change has confirmed a £60 million grant fund to help up to 10,000 small retailers install reverse vending machines before the October 2027 launch. Qualifying small independent retailers can claim £6,000 per site, paid in three annual instalments of £2,000, with the first instalment due three months after a machine is installed.

Alongside the grants, Exchange for Change has also widened the exemption framework for retailers that do not want to host a return point. The obligation to host an RVM open to all shoppers falls on what the regulations define as a "groceries retailer" — covering supermarkets, grocery stores, convenience stores and newsagents. Hospitality venues, takeaways, gyms, cinemas, and online retailers are excluded from the obligation to run return points, though they must still charge the deposit on eligible containers sold for off-premises consumption.

Detailed eligibility criteria and guidance on applying for exemptions will be published in Q3 2026.

"This package of support has been developed following extensive consultation with industry and intended to help retailers of different sizes make the best choice for their business, whether that is installing a reverse vending machine or applying for an exemption."

Russell Davies, Chief Executive, Exchange for Change

The return handling fee: 3p manual, 5p RVM

Exchange for Change has confirmed the return handling fee — the per-container payment that retailers and operators receive for processing returned bottles and cans. The fee is structured as follows:

• 3p per container for manual return points (staff-handled)
• 5p per container for the first 225,000 items returned through a reverse vending machine each year
• 1.3p per container for RVM returns above the 225,000 threshold

The fee is designed to cover the cost of the equipment, staff time, and floor space required to operate a return point. For high-volume retailers, the 5p rate on the first 225,000 RVM returns represents meaningful revenue on top of the grant support.

October 2027: the DRS timeline

The DRS will launch on 1 October 2027 across England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland, with Wales launching on the same date and including glass containers within its scope. The scheme covers PET plastic, steel, and aluminium drinks containers between 150ml and 3 litres.

Around 31 billion single-use drinks containers are placed on the UK market each year. The DRS is designed to push return rates above 90% within three years of launch — a significant increase from the current estimated 70–75% collection rate. The infrastructure required to achieve that includes approximately 36,750 reverse vending machines across the UK.

Importantly, containers covered by the DRS are excluded from the packaging EPR obligations — PET, aluminium, and steel drinks containers within scope fall outside pEPR, which affects how producers in those categories calculate their compliance obligations.

What it means for businesses now

Sustainable packaging for e-commerce and retail

Priory Direct supplies cardboard boxes, paper mailers, packing tapes, and protective packaging — all designed to align with the UK's EPR and recyclability requirements.