£4.4 million battle chest as Walsall chiefs ramp up action against fly-tippers - here's what's planned
Walsall chiefs are poised to pump £4.4 million into a fund to ramp up its fight against fly-tippers dumping waste in the streets.
Walsall has two rubbish tips at recycling centres in Beechdale and Aldridge and privately-run yards for commercial waste, but has been struggling to persuade unscrupulous people to use those facilities instead of leaving unsightly items on the roadside or on land.
Now the council said it plans to put £4.4m of new investment to crackdown on fly-tipping, anti-social behaviour and environmental crime if the scheme gets the green light from the cabinet at a meeting on Wednesday (September 24).
The funding which would be rolled out over a four-year period, will be spent on a £250,000 expansion of CCTV coverage, extra patrols, recruiting five new community protection enforcement officers, improved partnership working, the successful Operation Phoenix visible security model borough-wide, with new funding for youth and community safety projects, creating a new intelligence post to improve information sharing between the public, partners and the council, establishing an enforcement fighting fund to respond quickly to emerging issues, and extra legal resources to take more offenders to court.
Walsall Council leader Mike Bird: “In my leader’s report, I made a promise that enforcement action will ramp up in this borough. I am sick of fly-tipping and other aspects of anti-social behaviour in Walsall, and this investment proves we are not prepared to put up with it any longer.
“It is my priority to ensure our residents here in Walsall feel safe in the place we call home. Safe and attractive streets are vital for residents, businesses and investment. This is about making Walsall a place where people are proud to live, work and spend time.”
Enforcement boss Councillor Adam Hicken said: “Fly-tipping is the scourge of our borough and anti-social behaviour negatively impacts the quality of our residents. This major investment sends a clear message – we will not tolerate those who blight our communities. By increasing visible patrols, expanding CCTV and giving our teams the tools and resources they need, we will take firm action to keep Walsall safe and clean.”
The council added that additional enforcement activity will build on the council’s 16,000 annual interventions, which include inspections, patrols, warnings, fixed penalty notices and prosecutions.
In July two fly-tippers were fined a total of £800 after being captured on film dumping rubbish. One individual was recorded on CCTV improperly disposing of a large glass fish tank in Stephenson Avenue, in Beechdale; while in May another individual was identified via footage leaving half a bag of household waste in Spout Lane, in Caldmore. Both were fined £400.
In January around nine tonnes of dumped rubbish was cleared from Dalkeith Street in Birchills in one of the worst incidents to be reported. The nearby property has since been re-developed by the owners.
Between April 2022 and January 2025 the town hall cleared 74 different fly-tipping incidents from the streets at a cost of around £15,000 to the taxpayer.
To view the meeting online visit walsallcouncilwebcasts.com/
