Nearly 80 children at schools in a Black Country borough have been handed £75 fines for dropping litter in a series of sting operations since September last year, the Express & Star can reveal.
Across Sandwell, 1,755 fixed penalties handed to people of all ages since August 2006 has swelled council coffers by £87,075, while court action against refusers has brought in another £36,439. Sandwell Council today revealed it has given 78 fines to children this academic year alone.
Three pupils at Alexandra High School in Tipton were caught in the latest crackdown by litter wardens on teenagers dropping their chip papers and sweet wrappers at lunchtime.
The policy has been criticised as too heavy handed by parents concerned that teenagers who try to make amends by picking the rubbish up and putting it in the bin are still fined.
A pupil’s father told how he saw a van load of wardens watching teenagers at lunchtime near Alexandra High School last Friday.
The 43-year-old, who asked not to be named, said: “My daughter dropped an ice cream wrapper last year. She was seen by a warden and she picked it up but the warden said it didn’t matter, he’d seen her do it and she’d get a fine.
“The kids should be given a chance to make up for it.”
It is the second time littering at the Alexandra Road school has been targeted since last September.
Sandwell Council’s cabinet member for safer communities Councillor Derek Rowley said: “We do offer schoolchildren who are caught littering the opportunity to discharge the penalty by taking part in a clean-up in the community where they dropped the litter.”
Ian Binnie, headteacher at Alexandra High, said: “Some of our pupils have a problem with dropping litter. We are working closely with the council and I requested the wardens be sent to the school.”
16 Comments
Appropriate name for the headteacher…We know Sandwell is a dump but they’re only kids.Give them a chance to pick it up and if they refuse then fine them.How low will these money grabbing councils stoop?
NOT JUST SCHOOLCHILDREN BUT WATCH THE CAR DRIVERS AS THEY GO ALONG THEY CHUCK RUBISH OR ASH FROM CARS WHILE MOVING !
Hard on crime, hard on the causes of crime, no, let’s pick on the kids who are not given the chance to make ammends.
We are governed by a bunch of cowardly thieves !!!
the parents should be made to pick it up!
If they were taught on how to use the bins when they were of a young age, then they wouldnt have a fine for droping rubish on the pavements now. They need to be taught right from wrong and if this is the only they will learn then i am all for it. When I was young (mind you I am only in my 30’s) my parents taught me to put my rubish in the bins when we were out and if there was no bins then I was made to put it in my pockets until we got to a bin and i still do this now wther it is a small sweet wrapper or chip papers. The kids today have the dont care attidued to be to bothered to bin their rubish. Somebody else will come along and pick it upp for them. These kids are older and should know better by now as they are nearly adults if you can call them that.
I totally agree that litter droppers should be fined, have you seen the streets these days ablaze with sweet wrappers and cans - need I go on, it seems today that people do not care and can not be bothered, its basic good manners to put rubbish in the bins - I would really love to see how some of these people live. This country as a whole is beginning to look like a tip.
I’m with Sharon on this. Kids or not, there is absolutely no excuse to drop litter. Slack, half-arsed parenting by a generation seemingly devoid of moral/social standards would appear to be the cause as usual. It seems the only way the masses can be educated these days is with a big stick. So yes, fine them. If that doesn’t stop them, fine them again. Mind you, there is also a stong argument that litter improves the environment in Sandwell…..
do all these children have permission to leave the school. if not then the school is responsible for them. so will the school pay the fine.
the school needs to take responsibility for the children in its care, how can the parent be responsible when the child is at school.
I live near to Alexandra High, and the route the children take from the shops at the bottom of Lower Church Lane back to school looks like a tip after lunchtime. The children know exactly what they are doing when they drop the litter, so continue to fine them, and maybe then they will get the message. The school will have PSHE and citizenship on the curriculum, and parents have a clear responsibility to teach their own children what is right and what is wrong. If they choose to stick two fingers up at the rest of the law abiding community then they deserve to be fined over and over again. Simple as that.
what about the bin men that drop rubbish from the bi lorries and do not pick it up.They don t get any fines
Good, about time they took responsibility for the actions and paid the price. Maybe if the law were harder on youngsters they would learn pretty quickly breaking the law is not for fun.
If they do it again, how about the cane?
i agree too with sharon. as does mr. c
well done you pair
Dear John - if these kids were taught right from wrong by their parent(s) before they actually start school then perhaps they would not drop litter in the first place, it is not the responsibility of the school to teach these kids not to drop litter its basic human tasks that should be taught beforehand.
my son goes to alex high school the chippy is five minutes walk away there’s a burger van 2 minutes away,and if you walk near these fast food bars there’s not many bins about ok it is a fine if you throw litter on the floor BUT were are sandHELL council when the gypsy’s leave there piles of rubbish everywhere,i’ll tell ya we the hardpressed taxpayer gets there filthy fines.
Dear John - It’s not the school’s job to teach good manners to children… that’s for the parents. Typical attiude of everyones to blame but me!
About time this happened,you only have to luck a the sreets it’s about time we took pride in our communities.If people are hit in the pocket they will think twice.