Council slaps fly-tippers with £400 fine and CCTV camera goes up at notorious dumping ground in Northampton

Fly-tippers who have been dumping rubbish at a notorious private site in Northampton have been warned to expect heavy fines for their actions.

West Northamptonshire Council' s (WNC) Neighbourhood Wardens have issued two £400 fixed penalty notices for fly-tipping at the site near Sixfields Reservoir in recent weeks, and are investigating a number of other incidents.

The council says it has also engaged with the landowner in a bid to prevent fly-tipping in future, serving a Community Protection Notice Written Warning urging them to replace the fencing to make the site more secure, and to make regular checks on the property.

This newspaper visited the site on Monday afternoon (February 14) and saw what looks like a new camera at the site.

Piles of rubbish - including mattresses, bedding and household items – have recently been cleared from the site by the landowner, and offensive graffiti has been obscured.

The council says its wardens will continue to carry out regular patrols of the area in order to monitor the situation.

Councillor David Smith, from WNC, said: “The site is privately owned, so while we cannot expect our taxpayers to foot the bill for clearing away fly-tipping on the land, it is in everyone's interest to tackle the issues here. That's why we want to work closely with the landlord to ensure the site is secured and kept as clean as possible.

“Fly-tipping is a national problem that blights our streets and countryside, and we will investigate any and all incidents that are reported to us, whether they occur on private or public land.

"While we do patrol this area regularly, we would also encourage residents who witness fly-tipping in this area - or indeed any other site in West Northants, to report it to us so that we can bring these people to justice.

“Fly-tippers face a £400 fixed penalty notice, and, in some cases, can be prosecuted, resulting in an unlimited fine or up to six months imprisonment on conviction in a magistrates' court."

People can report fly-tipping by visiting https://www.westnorthants.gov.uk/bins-recycling-and-street-cleaning/report-fly-tippingRead more: Nazi graffiti removed from notorious fly-tipping spot in Northampton and landowner slapped with WARNING