Inside Salisbury: Fly-tipping success and millions of pounds approved
Wiltshire Council update on progress
by Annette J Beveridge
Wiltshire Council’s environmental enforcement team has been highly commended at the National Keep Britain Tidy Awards.
The council was shortlisted for the Enforcement Excellence Award for its work to tackle environmental crime along with Cambridge City Council and Wigan Council, with Wigan Council claiming the award at the ceremony in Liverpool on Thursday, January 30.
During 2024, the team embarked on an enforcement and educational programme to deliver significant improvements in the local environment and to reduce fly-tipping across Wiltshire.
Cabinet Member for Highways and Street Scene, Councillor Nick Holder, said: “Even though we did not win the award this time, being nominated for a national award is still a brilliant result for the team and their continued efforts to tackle fly-tipping in the county.”
Building on the success of its We’re Targeting Fly-tippers (WTF) campaign, the council launched the additional Stop at Source (SAS) campaign in July and recognised that education played a vital role in making people aware of their ‘duty of care’. This included the removal of waste, particularly, if handing it to someone who advertises ‘tip runs’ on social media.
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Cllr Holder added: “I’d like to congratulate the team and thank them for their ‘can do’ attitudes, always embracing new ideas and going above and beyond to ensure the continued success of the We’re Targeting Fly-Tippers campaign.
“The number of fly-tips in Wiltshire has been on a downward trend over the course of last year. We’ve also seen a 31% increase in fly-tipping prosecutions year on year. We are taking all the legal options available to us wherever we find fly-tipping, giving a clear warning that illegal waste disposal is not tolerated, and offenders will face serious consequences.
“Our message is clear – We’re Targeting Fly-tippers here in Wiltshire.”
To find out more about the WTF campaign and how to report fly-tipping in Wiltshire, people should go to: www.wiltshire.gov.uk/fly-tipping
Wiltshire Council Cabinet approves millions of pounds funding
THE allocation of millions of pounds for local growth and skills development across the county was approved by Wiltshire Council Cabinet this week.
At the meeting, on Tuesday, February 4, almost £2m from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) for the 2025-2026 financial year was approved.
The funds, £1,875,033 in total, will help to ensure continued support for local growth, businesses, and skills development across Wiltshire. It will be invested in tackling fuel poverty, growing Wiltshire’s businesses, and supporting rural hubs, and community projects. It will also help people to work.
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Leader of Wiltshire Council and Cabinet Member for Economic Development, Councillor Richard Clewer, said: “I’m pleased that Cabinet has approved this investment plan, which will help to support a range of projects, building on our successful programmes to help people in Wiltshire back into work and to tackle fuel poverty.
“We will also continue to invest in our successful Business Fit for the Future to help the county’s businesses to thrive and support them to reduce their carbon emissions.
Cllr Clewer said: “We have a clear focus on enhancing opportunities for people and businesses in Wiltshire and we have carefully prioritised initiatives that will bring the most benefit to our communities, based on evidence of need and the successful delivery of our previous projects.”
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UKSPF was introduced by the Government in 2016 to replace European Union funding with an aim to promote local growth through three key areas: Communities and Place, Supporting Local Businesses, and People and Skills. In July 2022, the council’s original investment plan was approved by the Cabinet based on a previous initial Government allocation of £8.38m.
To see the full list of planned investments and to read the Cabinet report, people should click here.