Issue - meetings

To note the update report from the Cleaner Borough Group and the progress made on the implementation of the Environmental Amenity Action Plan.

David Steeds, Head of Environmental Health and Safety, gave a presentation in respect of the Cleaner Borough Group.

The Cleaner Borough Group was set up partially in response to the A Clean Sweep Review carried out by a Working Group of the Panel.  The Cleaner Borough Group is a sub-group of the Anti-social Behaviour Safety Group which is accountable to the Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership. 

The Cleaner Borough Group was made of representatives from range of organisations including the Police, the Fire and Rescue Service, Bracknell Forest Homes and a range of Council Teams including Environmental Health, Parks and Countryside, Landscape Services, Waste and Cleansing Services and the Crime and Disorder Reduction Team.  The Group’s remit covers the tackling of a range of environmental crimes including fly tipping, littering, fly posting, graffiti and abandoned vehicles. 

During 2008/09 the Group had focused their attention on improving the layout and signage at recycling sites, targeting known hotspots for dumped rubbish and fly tipping with CCTV cameras and providing training on waste enforcement.

The Head of Environmental Health and Safety undertook to provide further information in respect of Target C17 (Signage).

Enforcement action is being taken against people who have been caught littering the Borough.  To date:

·         Two formal cautions had been issued for fly tipping

·         One fly-tipping case would be prosecuted in court later in the year

·         Fixed penalty notices had been issued for littering

·         One successful prosecution has taken place for fly posting

·         One prosecution for fly posting was pending

The Panel expressed concern over the use of covert CCTV filming to monitor people and questioned what checks and balances were in place to protect residents. Although, covert filming had been used by the Council for the past two or three years to record underage test purchase exercises it had not, to date, been used to capture incidents of fly tipping or other environmental crimes.  The Council’s Corporate Management Team had recently reviewed the approvals procedure for covert operations and had agreed that only Directors, the Chief Officer: Environment and Public Protection and the Head of Trading Standards would be able to authorise covert filming and any requests for the use of covert filming had to be supported by a sound business case.  In addition, a formal audit of all covert operations authorised was carried out by a high court judge on a regular basis.

It was agreed that a report detailing the Council’s use of covert filming would be brought to the Panel’s next meeting.