Our work to tackle fly-tipping in Peterborough
Fly-tipping continues to be a serious issue across Peterborough, which we are actively working to tackle.
How fly-tipping impacts our city
Fly-tipping has a range of social, economic and environmental implications:
- Socially it makes areas look rundown and uncared for. This can lead to a reduction in social pride and responsibility and encourage other anti-social behaviour.
- Economically it costs local authorities huge sums of money to deal with fly-tipping. This money could be spent on other council services such as social care.
- Environmentally there are risks for wildlife, threats of toxic material leaching into the ground and waterways, plus the release of dangerous CFCs from old fridges and freezers.
Our responsibilities and powers in relation to fly-tipping
As the local waste authority, we are responsible for clearing fly-tipping from public land. Once reported to us, we aim to clear the fly-tipped waste within two working days (one working day if hazardous waste). We cannot remove waste that is on privately owned land as it is the landowner’s responsibility.
Our Environmental Enforcement Team investigates and enforces cases of fly-tipping on both public and private land. We can only do this if there is evidence of who the waste belongs to or who fly-tipped the waste.
We use our enforcement powers to seek out and prosecute the people responsible for fly-tipping. As a local authority, we can issue Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs) of up to £1,000 for fly-tipping.
Some fly-tipping cases will be dealt with by the courts. The Magistrates Court can impose a fine of up to £50,000 or 12 months’ imprisonment if convicted. The Crown Court can impose an unlimited fine and up to five years’ imprisonment if convicted. The courts can also order those responsible to pay costs and deprive rights to a vehicle used to commit and offence.
Fly-tipping: council responsibilities - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
How we tackle fly-tipping
DEFRA funding
In May 2024, we were awarded just under £50,000 by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA). This was part of a nationwide scheme to target fly-tipping hotspots. We used the funds to provide further cameras at hotspot locations to assist with collecting evidence to allow for enforcement actions, and to raise awareness of fly-tipping and waste disposal through educational programmes.
Communications campaigns and promotion of registered waste carriers
After we were awarded the DEFRA funding above in 2024, we ran a successful campaign to encourage people to use registered waste carriers. As part of the campaign, we ran a series of social media posts featuring footage and images highlighting the risks that residents run by using unlicensed traders to get rid of their waste, including the threat of heavy fines if the waste gets fly-tipped and traced back to them.
We also have a dedicated Registered Waste Carriers page that explains how you can identify whether a tradesperson or company is licensed with the Environment Agency to sell, buy, transport or dispose of waste.
Task and Finish Group
We have a cross-party task and finish group to specifically look at fly-tipping and increased Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs) for fly-tipping offences to the maximum amount, as part of our budget.
Debris Working Group
We facilitate a quarterly Debris Working Group which comprises the relevant Cabinet Member, senior council officers, partner agencies and volunteers to drive forward collaborative action to help tackle littering and fly-tipping across Peterborough.
CCTV
We use CCTV to catch fly-tippers by deploying mobile cameras in hotspots to deter offenders, monitor activity and gather evidence for prosecution. We also use the council's network of over 160 fixed CCTV cameras positioned in locations across Peterborough which are monitored by a dedicated team of CCTV operators. We also use a combination of mobile cameras to monitor hot spot locations in the urban and rural areas of Peterborough, with 16 cameras in total that are rotated regularly across the most affected areas and monitored by our enforcement officers.
Footage captured on the main CCTV network is sent by our operators to Enforcement Officers within our Safer Communities Team. Footage from the mobile cameras is securely shared with our officers via a cloud-based platform. Once footage of a fly-tipping incident has been received, our Enforcement Officers will then launch an investigation - often working in partnership with the Police and Registered Social Landlords etc - to identify offenders.
Educational workshops
Our officers also regularly visit local schools to teach children about the importance of proper waste disposal. Through these free workshops, we aim to raise awareness of waste related issues and increase the amount of waste recycled in the city.
E-permit system at the Household Recycling Centre
In February 2025, we introduced an e-permit system at our Household Recycling Centre to help it operate more effectively. This measure aims to reduce usage of the Fengate Household Recycling Centre by residents from outside the Peterborough City Council area, making it more convenient and accessible for Peterborough residents to use as a means of responsibly disposing of their household waste.
Online booking system for bulky waste collections
We know that not everyone has access to a vehicle or there are residents who may need help in safely disposing of their larger unwanted items, so we offer a bulky waste collection service. This offers residents an affordable service that provides peace of mind that their waste will be collected at a pre-arranged time and disposed of appropriately.
We now have an online booking system for bulky waste collections in addition to the option of calling Customer Services.