Anyone caught fly-tipping rubbish on the borough streets from 15 August 2016 will face a £400 on-the-spot fine by Ealing Council.

Ealing is one of the first boroughs to adopt the higher rate fixed penalty notice as part of London-wide crack down to keep the capital clean.

Fly-tipping of household and business waste is a serious offence which can lead to a criminal prosecution. The council has been tackling the problem in Ealing through a mixed approach of giving one-to-one advice and support on the doorstep alongside tough enforcement.

A special team from the council’s recycling service has been knocking on doors in areas where problems are occurring, talking to residents to find out the causes of persistent issues and to put in place lasting solutions.

At the same time, council officers and staff from its environmental enforcement contractor, Kingdom, have been patrolling the borough to catch offenders red-handed. To date, 111 of fixed penalty notices have been given to fly-tippers since 6 June 2016.

Council officers have also been running joint operations with the police as well as using resident reports, searching through dumped bags, and using CCTV and mobile cameras in areas that attract fly-tippers.

This information is being used to catch the culprits red handed and build a comprehensive picture of problem areas, and the causes of the fly-tips, so that more targeted action can be taken.

In one recent case, the council helped to catch fly-tippers illegally dumping rubbish outside of a dentist in Southall. After complaints were made, council officers visited the premises daily, searching through the rubbish bags before clearing them and using CCTV footage to identify those responsible. On one of their visits officers caught the fly-tippers in the act and they have now been issued with a fixed penalty notice.

Councillor Bassam Mahfouz, cabinet member for transport, environment and leisure, said: “The vast majority of residents and business are law abiding and care about the neighbourhood they live in. Like me, they are disgusted by the behaviour of the few people who feel they can act in an appalling manner by fly-tipping their rubbish rather than getting rid of it legally."

“If people are experiencing a problem using the rubbish and recycling service, help and support is available, but there is never any excuse for fly-tipping. That’s why we’ve increased the number of staff on the streets seeking to fine for this offence and deployed officers from Kingdom to catch the culprits.

“I ask residents to help us by being additional eyes and ears to identify those responsible so we can crack down on this selfishness.”

Residents are asked to report cases of fly-tipping here.

More information about the borough’s reuse and recycling centres, how to arrange a bulky waste collection and how to find scheduled collection days, is available here.

Residents can check whether a waste clearance company is licensed and legal by entering their details here.