Residents in fly-tipping hotspots across Gloucester were visited yesterday Thursday 22 May as part of a joint initiative between GCH and Gloucester City Council to raise awareness, encourage reporting, and promote pride in local neighbourhoods.
Our Homes and Neighbourhoods team was joined by Councillor Sebastian Field, Cabinet Member for the Environment and Councillor for Podsmead, and officers from the Council’s Waste and Environmental Crime teams for our ‘Let’s Talk Fly-Tipping’ event.
Together, they carried out a morning of door-knocking across areas most affected by fly-tipping.
Councillor Sebastian Field said: “People fly-tip and think it doesn’t affect anybody, but either the Council or GCH has to clear it away — which adds to everyone’s Council Tax bill or service charge. If you’ve got bulky items to get rid of, the City Council will collect up to three items for £26 — or just £13.50 if you’re on Housing Benefit or Council Tax Support.”
The exercise aimed to listen to residents’ concerns, explain how illegal dumping is handled, and share practical alternatives to fly-tipping. It also highlighted the financial and environmental impact of waste being dumped on estates and in communal areas.
Paul Reilly, Homes and Neighbourhood Area Lead at GCH, said: “Last year alone, GCH spent £184,000 clearing dumped rubbish. In blocks of flats, the cost of removing fly-tipping can be recharged to all residents — which isn’t fair on those who do the right thing.”
Liz Colley, A GCH customer from Podsmead said: “People come and dump their stuff – beds, furniture, anything – all over the path by the bin store. Our service charge has gone up. I’m a pensioner and still work a bit, so I have to pay the full service charge. It’s not fair, is it?
Karen Slater, also a Homes and Neighbourhood Area Lead, added: “A lot of customers we’ve been speaking to today were unaware that those costs are reflected in their service charges. Also, our Estate Services Workers come to areas expecting to do a different job, such as gardening or maintenance, and have to spend all their time clearing out bin areas.”
Practical support for proper waste disposal
Residents were also reminded of alternative options to fly-tipping:
- Book a bulky waste collection via gloucester.gov.uk
- Use the Hempsted Recycling Centre for large household waste
- Donate usable furniture to local charities like Emmaus or The Furniture Recycling Project
Fly-tipping is a breach of tenancy and can lead to legal action. When offenders are identified, GCH and the Council can issue fixed penalty fines of £400 and recharge the costs of clean-up, which are often significantly higher than the cost of lawful disposal.
Residents are encouraged to report fly-tipping:
- On GCH-managed land: www.gch.co.uk or customer.experience@gch.co.uk
- On public land: heretohelp@gloucester.gov.uk