New era for enforcement in the borough

Environmental Investigation Manager Dean Laws and his Neighbourhood Investigation Officers are responsible for helping ensure the Borough achieves its corporate objectives in being as clean, green, and safe as possible. This includes keeping roads and footpaths free from hazard or obstruction and helping combat crime that damages our environment, such as fly-tipping and graffiti.

The team responds to all reported complaints as well as carrying out routine inspections across the Borough, including known hotspot areas. Included in their responsibilities, the team have power to enforce under numerous current legislations, foremost amongst them being the Environmental Protection Act 1990, which can result in the issuing of warnings, notices, fixed penalty notices, and even court proceedings against alleged offenders.

Over the past year no fewer than 88 fixed penalty notices have been issued for littering, fly-tipping and duty of care for waste with 83 Community Protection Warnings, as well as other warnings and 22 successful prosecutions. Eight vehicles used in illegal fly-tipping have been being seized to prevent further use in this way.

Councillor Angela Page, Executive Councillor for Public Protection and Enforcement says “We are grateful to Dean and his team for his continued work to tackle envirocrime which could blight our Borough otherwise. Our Public Protection and Enforcement team do an exemplary job, but we know we can do so much more with the help of our residents and local businesses. Coming together as a community is important in fulfilling our mission to keep Bromley green and clean. We are really grateful to everyone who helps us with that goal.”

Residents and visitors to the Borough are encouraged to report fly-tipping if they come across it, by visiting www.bromley.gov.uk/report. The Council’s Enviro-crime reward scheme provides for up to a £500 reward where information comes forward leading to a successful prosecution.

ENDS

Notes to editors:

• Since September 2022, Dean and his team have investigated numerous offences in the borough, using all resources at their disposal to prevent, locate, examine, and identify all instances of illegal actions that affect everyone living and working in the borough. Their work so far had resulted in:

• 88 Fixed Penalty notices
  • 43 Litter served for Low Level Fly-tipping
  • 24 Duty of Care for waste
  • 21 Fly-Tipping
• 22 Successful Prosecutions
• 83 Community Protection Warnings
• 13 Verbal warnings 
• 15 Warning letters
• 14 Formal Notices
• 8 Vehicle Seizures
• 4 Simple Caution
• 1 Criminal Behaviour Order

• Areas that the Envirocrime Team can take enforcement action on, amongst others, include:
  • Abandoned vehicles,
  • Dog Fouling and Dog Control orders,
  • Fly-tipping,
  • Highway obstruction,
  • Littering,
  • Overhanging vegetation,
  • Unlicensed skips, hoarding & scaffolding,
  • Untaxed vehicles.
• A Fixed Penalty Notice offers an offender the opportunity to avoid prosecution by paying a fixed penalty.
• Visit www.bromley.gov.uk/Prosecutions for further information about prosecutions and enforcement work carried out by the Council.

For media enquiries, please contact Justin Brown, Public Affairs Officer, on

020 8461 7872 or email justin.brown@bromley.gov.uk