In March, Croydon council officers imposed a daytime ban on private waste contractors collecting rubbish from outside Thornton Heath High Street businesses. The move came in response to reports that business waste left on the pavement encouraged others to illegally dispose of waste by leaving it on the pavement.
Businesses at 100 addresses are now required to keep their commercial rubbish on their premises until it can be collected after 6pm.
Now the council plans to expand the 9am-6pm waste restriction, trialled as part of the council’s ‘Don’t Mess With Croydon –Take Pride’ campaign, to London Road in West Croydon this summer. More trials are being considered for other parts of the borough later in the year.
Enforcement
Enforcement is led by council neighbourhood safety officers, who have handed out two fixed penalty notices for non-compliance since the Thornton Heath trial began.
Councillor Stuart Collins, deputy leader of Clean Green Croydon, said: “Although it’s up to private businesses to dispose of their own shops’ waste, in practice this often meant there was discarded delivery rubbish that did Thornton Heath high street no favours.
“That’s why council officers stepped in to tighten the collection times and encourage shopkeepers to take more pride in their surroundings, and I’m really pleased at the difference this trial has made.
“Now we’re looking at doing something similar in West Croydon, and I look forward to seeing even more of our shopkeepers getting involved in making their local parades tidier and more attractive to customers.”
Register for free to comment