The model will see its newly created community compliance team ensure that the council recoups the costs of cleaning and the disposal of waste without placing an additional financial burden on residents.
The team will consist of four compliance officers who will aim to ensure that resources are directed where they are needed most, tackling hotspots effectively.
The new streets and environment policy will look to increase awareness and education for crimes including both fly-tipping and abandoned vehicles before resorting to formal action.
The council will be asking anyone with an interest in the new policy for their views on it in a survey during the summer.
Jason Perry, executive mayor of Croydon, said: “My administration has been working on this issue from day one. Increased effort has been put into cleaning the borough, with improvements to the Love Clean Streets app and 95% of fly-tips being removed within 24 hours.
“A key part of this new streets and environment enforcement policy is the recruitment of additional street-based compliance officers, who will focus on targeted, intelligence-led enforcement.
“These officers will issue Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs) where necessary and escalate cases for prosecution. Their presence on the streets will act as a deterrent to environmental crime, helping to change behaviour and hold those who blight our borough accountable.”
Enforcement action
Each case will be individually assessed to establish the kind of enforcement action that is needed.
If appropriate, advice and warnings will be the first step, followed by fines and then court action depending on the offence committed.
In some cases, formal action including fines and cautions will be used immediately where there is reason and evidence to do so.
Where fly-tipping takes place on private land, the council said it will contact the landowner and remind them of their responsibilities and to remove the waste.
Failure to comply can lead to enforcement action along with charging the full cost for the removal of the waste.
An increase in fly-tipping
In keeping with national trends, Croydon has experienced an increase in fly-tipping.
The council’s waste team cleared over 56,000 fly-tips in 2024 at an estimated cost of more than £1 million.
Croydon has a waste and street cleansing contract with Veolia. The partnership has seen 95% of all reported fly-tips cleared within 24 hours.
Veolia reported that the fly-tips have mostly consisted of domestic waste.
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