I live in a development with communal bins (they are large industrial bins).

There are multiple bins for normal (non-recycling) waste. The top can be lifted up and bin bags put in. You can fill a normal kitchen bin and take the bag out to the large bins very easily.

There is a single bin for recycling, but the top flap is padlocked and the only opening is similar to a large post box slot built into the lid. You have to individually enter items for recycling into the bin -- the slot is far too small for items in any kind of bag. This means that items for recycling have to be collected in the residence in a large open container and taken to the recycling bin and fed in one-by-one. Recycling is made far more difficult than not recycling by the council.

I assume that the large flats in Lambeth may have similar recycling bins, which actively discourage recycling. In comparison, in Lewisham supplied translucent orange bags that were used to collect recycling and those bags could be tied and deposited in the recycling bins.