Newark & Sherwood District Council

The law relating to keeping our streets clean

We are responsible for keeping all council land clear of litter and refuse.

We are not responsible for cleaning private land or land owned by other public bodies but we can serve a Litter Clearance Notice on occupiers of some private land (or owner if the occupier is not known), to clear rubbish-strewn land if they have failed to clear it themselves.

To find out when your street is cleaned or if you feel an area would benefit from additional cleaning, please contact us.

Litter

Fines up to £2,500 can be imposed at magistrates’ court and an authorised officer can demand the name and address of any person who is suspected of dropping litter on the street. It is a further offence to fail to give that information or to give a false name and address.

The authorised officer can issue a fixed penalty ticket of not less than £75 to anyone suspected of committing this offence. Litter specifically includes cigarette ends and chewing gum.

Street Litter Notices

We can impose these notices on certain premises where there is a litter problem on the roads and streets. They mainly apply to retail food shops and there is an obligation on the owners to ensure that the area around the shop is kept clean and tidy.

We work with the owners before taking formal enforcement action and there are strict criteria to be met before we can issue such notices. In the vast majority of cases, the owners take their responsibilities seriously – it is in their interest as well as the general public to keep the area litter free. Where a notice is served, we can now issue a fixed penalty ticket of £100 for failing to comply with the notice.

Reporting problems

Please report any litter problems to our customer services team.

Our street cleaning team also deal with the removal of

• Syringes
• Dead animals
• Dog fouling problems
• Fly tipping
• Graffiti and flyposting

Community clear-ups

If you, your parish council, school or local community group would like to organise a voluntary litter picking event in your area, we can support you by providing bags for the collection of litter and we will collect these after the event.

Please call us on 01636 650000 to arrange a collection point.