Glass at Spixworth Village Hall

A village hall on the outskirts of the city has had improved its CCTV system in a bid to stop people fly-tipping rubbish on the grounds.

The crime-busting cameras have been brought in at Spixworth Village Hall to deter fly-tippers after it was unable to have its normal refuse collected before Christmas as rubbish had been dumped in front of the bins.

But following the upgrading of the camera system anyone who now persists in using the Crostwick Lane site as a dumping ground will be reported as a fly-tipper.

Roz Rose, clerk of Spixworth Parish Council, said: “At Christmas they couldn’t empty the bins because they couldn’t get to the bins - people had just dumped stuff there.

“Those bins are for the social club and village hall. We have to pay for those bins but people were just bringing all sorts of stuff up and dumping it there. There were large items left so we couldn’t get the bins out. I myself made several tips to the tip and Broadland were very good - they sent a man from the environmental health department who struggled away and cleared all this himself.”

She added: “We’ve had some incidents around the village hall which was the reason for the improved CCTV. We have got CCTV now and will be keeping an eye...” Mrs Rose said she hoped the improved cameras would deter people from fly-tipping in the future, while helping to identify those people who persisted.

Meanwhile, people living in Spixworth who want to recycle glass at the village hall have been urged to not leave glassware there if the banks are full.

After the Christmas holidays staff at the village hall returned to find a “mountain of glass” piled up against the banks which again meant they could not be lifted to be emptied.

Mrs Rose, who did not want to put people off recycling glass there, said: “The banks are emptied on a weekly basis, so please - if the banks are full, hold onto your glassware for a few days and bring it back later.”

Broadland District Council has a ‘zero tolerance’ approach to fly-tipping and, with enough eviddence, actively seeks to prosecute offenders who can receive a £50,000 fine or five years imprisonment.

The council also has a duty to clear fly-tipping from the highway, footways, lay-bys, verges and on District Council owned land within Broadland although not from private land which is the responsibility of the owner.

Fly-tipping is waste that has been dumped illegally and will generally be cleared within 1.5 working days of the report unless further enquiries are involved.

To report fly-tipping call 01603 430534 or email environ.protection@broadland.gov.uk.

Have you got a story? Call reporter Peter Walsh on 01603 772436 or email peter.walsh@archant.co.uk.