Revealed: scale of fly tipping in Bracknell and Wokingham

Hundreds of incidents were recorded in Bracknell Forest, but the problem was even worse in Wokingham Borough.

In Bracknell Forest, 629 incidents of fly-tipping were reported.

But figures were much higher in Wokingham Borough, where a total of 2,284 incidents of  fly-tipping were reported in the last financial year from 2020/2021.

READ MORE: Record levels of fly-tipping in Bracknell - and no court fines in 12 months

There have been some bad incidents of fly-tipping in Bracknell Forest this year.

Weller’s Lane in Warfield has been particularly blighted with dumped waste, with five incidents reported in the last year and tipping in August blocking the road.

However, despite the hundreds of incidents investigated in Bracknell Forest, not one resulted in fines being issued in 2020/21.

Tim Bamford, from the Country Land and Business Association (CLA), has lamented that fly-tipping incidents rarely result in punishment for the perpetrators.

Mr Bamford CLA’s South East regional director, said: “Although the maximum fine for anyone caught fly-tipping is £50,000 or 12 months’ imprisonment, if convicted in a Magistrates’ Court, this is rarely enforced.

“Unless tougher or more realistic action is taken to combat this kind of rural crime, it will continue to wreak devastation across rural communities This is why it’s crucial that tougher punishments are imposed by the courts.”

More recently, 15 drivers were slapped with fines during a police ‘day of action’ in the Bagshot Road area in November, with one man also found to be three-and-a-half times over the drinking driving limit.

READ MORE: Bracknell trader fined after fly-tipping at garage blocks

In Bracknell Forest, the majority of the flytipping was deposited on highways (291) and on council land (299).

The majority of the waste in the recorded cases 182 was related to building works like construction, demolition and excavation.

In one case, clearing waste that had been dumped with a tipper lorry cost the council £350.

Meanwhile, in Wokingham Borough, the majority of incidents recorded, 1,488, were found on roads and country lanes.

That amounts to 65 per cent of the cases reported.

In one case,  Heathlands Road in rural Wokingham was rendered impassable after a sofa and other rubbish was dumped in the lane in November.

The record for prosecutions is only mildly better in Wokingham Borough, with 50 offenders being issued Fixed Penalty Notices issued specifically for fly-tipping.

Additionally, 15 Littering Fixed Penalty Notices were issued ‘in conjunction with fly-tipping’, making a total of 65 incidents where action was taken.

That means only 2.8 per cent of fly-tipping cases in Wokingham Borough resulted in punishment.

According to the data, the council has spent a total of £22,500 on clearing dumped waste.

£14,400 was spent on cleaning up where significant amounts of waste had been dumped across 27 flytipping incidents.

£8,100 was spent clearing waste which had been dumped using tipper lorries in 52 separate cases.

The council recently announced it would be undertaking a Christmas crackdown on fly-tipping, reminding would-be law breakers that ‘Santa is watching’.

READ MORE: New measures announced by Wokingham council to clamp down on Fly-tipping

If flytipping is traced back to an offender, they can be fined up to £400.

The council has encouraged people to dump their waste by booking slots at the re3 centres at Longshot Lane in Bracknell and Smallmead Road in Reading.

How to report flytipping

You can report flytipping on each council’s respective websites.

Report flytipping incidents in Bracknell Forest here: https://www.bracknell-forest.gov.uk/street-cleaning/fly-tipping-or-dumped-rubbish

You can report flytipping in Wokingham Borough here: https://www.wokingham.gov.uk/roadworks-and-outdoor-maintenance/report-a-problem-with-roads-and-streets/fly-tipping/

Prosecution for flytipping is managed by the Public Protection Partnership.