The Council has a duty to clear litter from land it is responsible for. We have to comply with the Government's Code of Practice on litter and refuse, which provides guidance on how quickly land should be cleaned once it becomes littered. The response time reflects the type of area and how badly littered it is. For example, a faster response time would apply to a heavily littered town centre than a slightly littered residential street.
The Code of Practice does not specify how often we should clean streets. Town and village centre areas, together with other heavily used areas, such as by local shops are manually cleaned on a fixed frequency basis. This is daily for town centres, and weekly in most other areas. All other streets in Spelthorne are cleaned at least once every 60 working days, in accordance with the Code of Practice response times.
Did you know that it is a criminal offence to drop litter? Under the Environmental Protection Act 1990, leaving or depositing litter is a criminal offence, which can result in a fine of up to £2,500. The Council also has powers to require certain types of businesses to reduce the effects of litter attributable to them. More information on the laws controlling litter is available on the EnCams web site (www.encams.org).
How can you help? Please don't drop litter - either use a litter bin, or take it home with you. To report a littered area, please telephone the Council's Direct Services on 01784 446401 or Complete our onlineform to report a litter problem
Litter bins
There are about 450 street litter bins in Spelthorne. Depending on the location, they are emptied at frequencies ranging from every day to once a week. Litter bins should not be used for the disposal of household refuse or trade waste. To report a damaged or overflowing litter bin contact Direct Services on 01784 446401 or Complete our onlineform to report a bin problem
Mechanical sweeping
The road channels (gutters) of most kerbed roads are mechanically swept using a road sweeping vehicle once every 20 days. This removes any grit, litter and general dirt that has acxcumulated in the gutter. In some roads the effectiveness of mechanical sweeping is limited by parked cars. During autumn extra mechanical sweeping is programmed into leaf clearance. To report problems with mechanical sweeping of gutters or leaves contact Direct Services 01784 446401 or Complete our online formto report a sweeping or leaf problem
Drug related litter
Occasionally syringes and other items relating to drug abuse are improperly discarded. Priority is given to the removal of these items To report discardrd syringes please call Direct Services on 01784 446401, giving as much information as possible on its location to help our cleansing staff find the item
Fly tipping
The illegal deposit of waste, commonly known as fly tipping is a criminal offence that can result in a fine of up to £20,000 or up to two years in prison. The Council will clear fly tipped waste from Council land, but we cannot remove waste from private land such as privately owned rear access lanes. The landowner or occupier is responsible for clearing waste from private land. How can you help? Fly tipped waste can be reported to Direct Services on 01784 446401 or Complete our online formto report a fly tipping problem. Please give as much information as possible about the type and quantity of waste and its location.
If you have work done on your property, ask the trades person how and where they are going to dispose of the waste they produce. Don't give your waste to anybody unless you're satisfied that it is going to be disposed of properly. If anybody calls round at your home offering to take waste away for a cash payment, you are strongly advised not to give your rubbish to them. Most reputable waste disposal companies do not operate like this.
