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Council defends giving four litter fines in decade

Bethan Nimmo
BBC News, Oxfordshire
BBC A Coca Cola bottle is seen discarded on the floor in Witney, surrounded by cigarette butts.BBC
Despite the low number of fines in west Oxfordshire, plenty of litter was seen by the BBC in Witney

Only four fines have been issued for littering by West Oxfordshire District Council in the past decade, figures obtained by the BBC have revealed.

A Freedom of Information request showed a total of 401 fixed penalty notices for the offence have been handed out by councils across Oxfordshire since 2015.

Oxford City Council gave the most at 204.

West Oxfordshire District Council said it took environmental offences "seriously" but argued fines can only be given when people are seen littering, which can "limit enforcement opportunities".

Tracy Adams can be seen wearing a yellow high vis jacket, using a litter picker to put rubbish into a purple plastic sack near Thame Services.
Thame Womble Tracy Adams goes litter picking at least five times a week

Liam Walker, a Conservative councillor on the council, said the low level of fines was "astonishing" but he was also shocked at the level of littering.

"It's not just about enforcement from the council... and government and police, it's all also about education - teaching people not to be throwing litter in this day and age," he said.

Councils were given powers to issue larger fines of up to £500 for littering in 2023.

Tracy Adams is part of the group Thame Wombles and does a litter pick most days, collecting as much as eight bags of rubbish at a time.

"To make an example of a few people, it just might stop others doing it," she said.

"[Littering is] just pure laziness from people."

Barbara Polonara from the Berks, Bucks & Oxon Wildlife Trust (BBOWT) sits in the CS Lewis Nature Reserve in Oxford, wearing a blue BBOWT hoodie and green fleece, with a path, trees, foliage and a pond seen in the background.
Barbara Polonara from the Berks, Bucks and Oxon Wildlife Trust says wildlife can easily become trapped in rubbish

The Berks, Bucks and Oxon Wildlife Trust (BBOWT) warned that littering has a serious impact on nature.

Barbara Polonara, community wildlife officer, said small mammals like hedgehogs were at risk.

She said: "There's a huge issue where they get stuck in a lot of different litter, especially when they're looking for food, they can't free themselves and then they die."

When asked about the level of fines handed out, West Oxfordshire District Council said it did recognise the importance of keeping public spaces clean.

A spokesperson said: "Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs) for littering can only be issued when individuals are directly observed committing an offence, which can limit enforcement opportunities.

"In many cases, litter found in public areas does not include identifying information, making it difficult to take formal action."

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