Street cleansing

We have three litter picking teams spread geographically throughout the district carrying out a range of operations on a daily basis five days per week.

Following the fall of leaves in the autumn, several ‘hot-spot' locations are attended where large accumulations of leaves are removed. These generally are on footpaths adjacent to the highway.

900 bins are located around the district for residents to dispose of litter and dog waste. These bins are designed so that offensive waste is better contained, but dog waste that is bagged can also be placed in litter bins.

It is an offence under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 for any person to fly tip rubbish on any land in the open air. We take fly tipping seriously and where there is sufficient evidence we will seek to prosecute offenders. If found guilty of the offence at Crown Court the offender may be liable for a fine of up to £50,000 and up to five years imprisonment. 

We will not remove fly tipping on private land but may take action if there is sufficient evidence.

We will remove dead animals from public land upon request. We will also scan any pets and if a microchip is present and contains the correct information we will contact the owner who will be offered the opportunity to collect their pet. Deceased pets that we collect are taken to the Council Depot on Lane Green Road, Bilbrook, WV8 1LR. Any deceased pets not collected within 24 hours will be disposed of by the Council. We will not remove deceased pets from private properties. 

We will not remove small dead animals including squirrels and birds from public land.

The Dogs (Fouling of Land) Act 1996 requires people to pick up after their dogs and failure to do this may result in the issue of a fixed penalty notice of £50. If this is not paid then you may be taken to court where the fine can be up to £1,000. Most public areas within South Staffordshire, including most footpaths, are covered by the Act.

We will remove graffiti from buildings and public land that we are responsible for. Whilst we are not responsible for removing graffiti on private buildings, we will endeavour to make the owner aware when reports are received. 

We aim to remove offensive graffiti, defined as that which is racially offensive and/or hostile to a religious group, sexually offensive, homophobic, depicts a sexual or violent act or is defamatory, within 24 hours.

We are responsible for maintaining and repairing street name plates and village signs. You can visit the Staffordshire County Council ADD LINK HERE website who are responsible for road traffic and directional signs.

Weed spraying is carried out three times per year along the edges of pathways on our open spaces. Known Japanese Knotweed on our own land is also sprayed three times per year, thus removing the need to stem inject every stem.

The Council owns land which requires work with the cutting down of Himalayan Balsam. This work is carried out twice per year in May and August as long as the ground is not boggy.