Litter Enforcement

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  • #146516

    WrexhamUser
    Participant

    This is an interesting document:
    Guidance: Enforcement officers: issuing fixed penalty notices by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs [updated February 2017].

    Particularly of note is the guidance on issuing fixed penalty notices, that includes accredited officers, for example, Kingdom Security. The guidance states that,

    Don’t issue an FPN if any of the following apply:
    there’s no criminal liability

    enforcement action is inappropriate or would be disproportionate for the offence

    prosecution is more suitable

    littering is done accidentally

    It gives further guidance about accidental littering,

    Accidental littering
    Don’t issue FPNs for accidental littering, for example if something falls from someone’s pocket

    Only issue FPNs where there is evidence of intent to drop litter

    Give offenders the chance to pick up litter before you issue an FPN. Warn them that you will issue an FPN if they don’t

    This is at odds with the frequently asked questions on the Wrexham Council website,

    If I pick up my litter after an officer has approached me do I still get a fine?

    Litter offences relate to the act of dropping litter so whether or not you volunteer to pick this up afterwards you have still committed an offence and will still receive a fine.

    Two questions arise,
    Is the ‘advice’ given by Wrexham Council website correct?
    Are the FPNs for littering being issued as per the Government’s guidance?

    #146523

    R T
    Keymaster

    As reported on here previously regarding Kingdom , the Lead Member has been clear: ‘We are not following DEFRA guidance, we are following legislation’.

    #146536

    WrexhamUser
    Participant

    [quote quote=146523]As reported on here previously regarding Kingdom , the Lead Member has been clear: ‘We are not following DEFRA guidance, we are following legislation’.[/quote]

    While accepting that is the opinion of the lead member, they must comply with their obligations. An obligation is that the local authority shall have and publish an enforcement strategy. I am unsure if their viewpoint corresponds with that document.

    Contradictions exist between the lead members viewpoint and the document. The introduction mentions that any enforcement action is taken only after consideration of the enforcement strategy, which emphasises proportionate, sensible action, and a focus on prevention. While not wanting to reiterate the whole Wrexham County Borough enforcement strategy, as people will make their own subjective interpretation of it, two stark difference appears to exist between the policy and the lead members viewpoint. Section 2 ‘Our Approach’ clearly states they will adhere, ‘to the latest national guidelines and best practice’. The various parts of section 4 ‘Regulatory Enforcement Sanctions’, also states the council will when taking the step of ‘Formal Enforcement Action’, in which it includes fixed penalty notices, will be ‘in accordance with statutory guidelines, relevant codes of practice and any professional guidance’. I shall leave it to other’s to decide if the lead officer’s viewpoints comply with the enforcement strategy document.

    If anybody from the council happens to read this post, have a look at Section 4.2 (Step 3). When the updated 2017 policy document was introduced, anti-social behaviour orders (ASBOs) had already been abolished three years previously due to the introduction of the Anti-Social Behaviour Crime and Policing act 2014!

    Just to be clear, I have not been caught littering, but the enforcement policy adopted by the council does seem fraught with problems.

    #146538

    Matt
    Participant

    [quote quote=146536]
    If anybody from the council happens to read this post, have a look at Section 4.2 (Step 3). When the updated 2017 policy document was introduced, anti-social behaviour orders (ASBOs) had already been abolished three years previously due to the introduction of the Anti-Social Behaviour Crime and Policing act 2014!

    Just to be clear, I have not been caught littering, but the enforcement policy adopted by the council does seem fraught with problems.[/quote]

    Don’t leave things to chance, it’s unlikely that anyone from the council who reads the forums will be bothered/action anything.

    All concerns/issues needs to go straight in an email to Trevor Coxon [email protected] – he’s (and his lackeys) the only one who will actually really action members of the general public’s important queries and get response clarifications or reports issued.

    #146546

    Council Watcher
    Participant

    Hi Trevor Coxon has retired and the contact now is Sioned Wyn Davies

    #146558

    Anonymous
    Inactive

    Most of the littering in Wrexham is done by council employees on Re-cycle Day. My street has litter everywhere after the so-called collection. The Refuse Technicians (ha ha) make absolutely no effort to pick up anything that they drop or fail to place in their containers. Whilst I am absolutely against littering, the council should start the clean up in their own backyard.

    #146559

    Matt
    Participant

    [quote quote=146546]Hi Trevor Coxon has retired and the contact now is Sioned Wyn Davies[/quote]

    Haha so he has – just looked it up. I was still getting correspondence from him up until this Month. I say all the best to him!

    Trevor to take on Tour de France leg in charity fundraiser

    #147149

    Cymrodor
    Participant

    S4C’s current affairs series Y Byd ar Bedwar have had an undercover reporter work for Kingdom in Anglesey, an ex-employee in Denbighsbhre and several targetted individuals in Conwy and Anglesey contribute to a programme, available for a month or so via S4C website or app (Android, FireTV, etc). Gwynedd and now Anglesey have ditched Kingdom and their unfair practices.

    http://beta.news.wales/clic/c_level2.shtml?programme_id=540958652

    #147399

    123windows
    Participant

    Councillor Bithell is at best naive or at worst doesn’t give a damn about people’s concerns with Kingdom Security. They are a private company who’s only concern, just like any company, is to make a profit.

    They will go for easy targets, or the sort of people they think will fall for their threats of police backup for refusing to give them your details. They will even pretend to call the police on their mobile phones to scare people into giving their details.

    The police WILL NOT ATTEND any call outs from Kingdom Security regarding refusal to give your details. It is not a police matter and if the police were to attend, the most they could do would be to ensure that there was no breach of the peace. Furthermore, the police are not allowed to pass your details on to a 3rd party such as Kingdom Security, as this would be a breach of data protection laws.
    I also have it on good authority that Kingdom Security are seen as somewhere between a nuisance and a laughing stock by the local constabulary.

    Over 9000 peoplw have now joined the North Wales Against Kingdom Security group on Facebook. Kingdom have already been taken out of Anglesey and Gwynedd due to pressure on the local council’s in those areas and hopefully WCBC will soon follow suit.

    #147400

    R T
    Keymaster

    On the Anglesey front, was that like Gwynedd where it was under a trial period?

    Locally we had the trial and then it was decided to proceed with a permanent appointment – that turned out to be Kingdom.

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