Nearly 800 litterers prosecuted over unpaid fines

Offenders have been issued £366 each on average for littering

Almost 800 people across North East Lincolnshire have been taken to court for unpaid fines due to littering in the last six years.

From March 2018 to April 2024, Doncaster Council, on behalf of North East Lincolnshire Council (NELC), pursued 775 people with fixed penalty notices due to waste.

Offenders have been issued £366 each on average with penalties from the court totalling more than £208,000 including a fine, costs and victim surcharges.

In 2023, enforcement officers issued over 1,000 fixed penalty notices for dropped rubbish across the borough.

The Waste Investigations Support & Enforcement (WiSE) team took over from the Local Authority Support on 1 December, 2023.

In 2023, officers gave out 1,026 fines for those dropping litter on the streets and 96 for those doing so from a vehicle.

Money from the fines will be shared between the government and those who prepare the legal cases brought before the Magistrates Court.

'Never-ending cycle'

Councillor Henry Hudson, portfolio holder for environment and net zero, said: "It might seem like trivial stuff, but it’s not. If we want visitors to come to our area and enjoy it, we need it to look the part. Nobody wants to visit a town centre if there’s litter everywhere.

"We’ve also had the WiSE team out in our town centres and our high streets patrolling these areas, and stopping people for things like littering.

"It does feel sometimes like a never-ending cycle, but we are making progress."