Dead mare and foal 'fly-tipped' by roadside in Barnsley

The council said the animals had been removed

A dead mare and her foal have been found among fly-tipped rubbish beside a road near Barnsley.

Barnsley Council said it was working to trace the owners of the animals, which were discovered in a lay-by on the A635 in Goldthorpe on Wednesday.

The RSPCA said it was not investigating as it seemed the horse and her foal had died during birth and not from neglect.

It comes as the council has been criticised for not doing enough to tackle fly-tipping.

Government figures in December showed the number of successful prosecutions brought by councils against fly-tippers had fallen to a record low.

Little Houghton parish councillor Kevin Osbourne said he had passed on information to Barnsley Council about people committing offences but nothing had been done so far.

Hidden camera footage is being used by the council to name and shame fly-tippers

He said he regularly found "lorry loads" of rubbish dumped across countryside, including building material, household rubbish and tyres.

"Welcome to Barnsley, you should come into Barnsley from all the main roads and you drive past piles and piles of rubbish."

He added: "They've won more social media awards than they have had successful prosecutions on fly-tipping.

"They've got all the information they don't appear to be doing anything about it."

The council said the issue was a problem for all councils and it was determined to "reverse the trend".