Confidential Shredding and Document Destruction in Leicestershire

Secure document destruction for businesses across the East Midlands

Acorn Recyclers destroys confidential paperwork for businesses in Leicestershire and across the East Midlands, from a one-off clear-out of an archive room to lockable consoles emptied on a set schedule.

We work with solicitors, accountants, financial services, healthcare practices, schools, HR and payroll teams, estate agents, recruiters and local authorities. In short, anyone who holds personal data on paper and has a legal duty to dispose of it properly.

Everything is destroyed at our own site at Burton-on-the-Wolds, baled here, and sold into the paper mills as raw material. You get recorded weights, a Certificate of Destruction, and nothing going to landfill.

What we can destroy

Most of what comes to us is ordinary office paperwork, and it can arrive exactly as it is:

• Client files, case files and patient records
• Invoices, purchase ledgers, bank statements and payroll records
• HR files, application forms, contracts and references
• Printed reports, board papers and meeting minutes
• Archive boxes and whole filing cabinets of legacy paper
• Obsolete letterheads, branded stationery and pre-printed forms
• Withdrawn or superseded print work, packaging and labels

Staples, paper clips, treasury tags, plastic wallets and ring binders are all fine. Our machines are industrial, not office shredders. If you have something less usual, tell us what it is and we will say honestly whether we can handle it in-house rather than take it on and sub-contract it.

Three ways businesses use us

One-off purge

An archive room, a store cupboard, an office move or a retention review. We agree a date, bring the vehicle and the labour, and clear it in one visit. Twenty boxes or a full floor, the pricing works the same way.

Scheduled console service

Lockable consoles or bins placed where your people work, emptied weekly, fortnightly, monthly or on call. Staff put confidential paper straight in, so nobody has to decide in the moment what is and is not sensitive.

Sacks or boxes collected on demand

Secure sacks delivered to you, filled at your own pace and collected when you say. Useful for smaller offices and for sites with no room for a console.

How your material is handled

• Loaded and recorded. Material goes straight into our vehicles and is weighed in on arrival.
• Held securely. Confidential loads are kept on our own site, which is covered by 24-hour CCTV. Nothing is left standing in a public area.
• Destroyed here. Shredding is done on our own industrial machines. The result is irreversible. Nothing is readable afterwards and nothing can be reconstructed from it.
• Baled and sold to the mills. The shredded fibre is baled on site and sold into the paper supply chain as raw material.
• Certified. A Certificate of Destruction is issued for every collection, with the recorded weight, for your compliance file.

We are a registered waste carrier and every load moves under a duty of care transfer note. Nothing we take for shredding goes to landfill.

Common questions

Do I need to take out staples, paper clips and ring binders?

No. Our shredders are industrial machines, not office ones. Send the paperwork as it is. If there are lever arch files or hard-backed folders in there, mention it and we will confirm before collection.

Do I have to unpack the boxes?

No. Boxes, sacks and files go in as they are.

Can you take a whole archive room in one go?

Yes. One-off purges are a large part of what we do, whether that is twenty boxes or a full office clearance. Tell us the volume and the access arrangements and we will quote it.

Is there a minimum quantity?

There is no fixed minimum, but the price per box falls sharply with volume. If you only have a handful of files it is usually worth waiting until you have a proper purge, or adding it to an existing collection.

Will I get proof it was destroyed?

Yes. A Certificate of Destruction for every collection, with the recorded weight. That is the document an auditor will ask to see.

What happens to the paper afterwards?

It is baled and sold into the paper mills as raw material. Because we are the recycler as well as the shredder, that happens under our own roof.

Can you destroy things other than paper?

Often, yes. Tell us what it is. If it is something we cannot handle in-house we will say so rather than take it on.

How quickly can you collect?

Tell us the date you need to be clear by and we will tell you honestly whether we can meet it.

What does it cost?

It depends on volume, access, and whether it is a one-off or an ongoing service. Quotes are free and there is no obligation.

Do you cover my area?

We collect regularly across Leicester, Loughborough, Melton Mowbray, Coalville, Hinckley, Market Harborough, Syston, Wigston, Shepshed, Oakham, Nottingham and Derby, and further afield for larger volumes. If you are not sure, just ask.

Get a price

Use the form below with a rough idea of the volume and whether it is a one-off or ongoing, and we will come back to you with a price. If it is easier to talk it through, call us on 01509 881215.

Security shredding FAQs

What can you shred?

Confidential paper and documents, plus unsold or branded stock that must be destroyed rather than resold.

Is shredded paper recycled?

Yes. Once shredded, the paper goes to paper mills to be made into new paper and board.

How is material collected?

We collect by rigid lorry or trailer, depending on volume. Tell us how much you have and how it is stored.

Do you provide paperwork?

Yes. You get the paperwork you need for your duty-of-care and data protection records.