FORD TRANSITS SEIZED IN COUNCIL CRACKDOWN ON FLYTIPPING – “Vehicles targeted before waste is being dumped”
plus: LEWISHAM CLEAN-UP FUNDING AVAILABLE / RUN, WALK, JOG, OR CYCLE A MILE FOR SPORT RELIEF / CROYDON COUNCIL CONSIDERS PLANS FOR £6MILLION YOUTH FACILITY /
CHISLEHURST COULD GET NEW LIBRARY
FORD TRANSITS SEIZED IN COUNCIL CRACKDOWN ON FLYTIPPING
Council officers targeting people who illegally carry or dump waste for cash have seized four Ford Transits in less than a month in joint operations with police.
• On Saturday 9 January Croydon council officers impounded a Ford Transit found in The Colonnades car park in Purley Way, Waddon – it had no licence to carry waste but contained rubbish and leaflets advertising waste removal services.
• On Wednesday 6 January council officers and Croydon police seized a Ford Transit van in Crispin Crescent, Waddon. This Transit also had no waste carrying licence and was filled with house clearance rubbish, and will be crushed if no-one comes forward to claim it by the end of January.
• Two days earlier (Monday 4 January) the council sent for crushing a Ford Transit flat-bed tipper whose driver was caught without a valid waste licence taking waste furniture along Albert Road, South Norwood, in December.
• Another Ford Transit was seized on 17 December in Purley Way for similar offences and will be sent for crushing this week.
The focus on unlicensed waste carriers comes as each week council officers clear away up to five truckloads of house clearance rubbish that is dumped on Croydon streets and industrial estates.
The council advises all residents wanting someone else to dispose of their household rubbish to only use people with a valid waste carrying licence issued by the Environment Agency.
Failing to do so can land the householder and the offender with unlimited fines and a criminal record.
The clampdown comes as part of the council’s Don’t Mess With Croydon Take Pride campaign, which has so far led to dozens of successful prosecutions for fly-tipping and littering, including a man jailed for six months in May 2015 for dumping 42 tonnes of waste in Waddon.
Since launching the Don’t Mess campaign in summer 2014, the council say they have also encouraged hundreds of people to become community champions and lead local clear-ups.
Croydon’s cabinet member for clean and green Croydon Cllr Stuart Collins said: “Even if you pay someone cash to get rid of waste and expect them to take it to the tip, you’re dicing with danger if your man with a van has no licence.
“Our Don’t Mess With Croydon campaign has scored some great prosecutions against people guilty of fly-tipping – this ongoing operation with the police goes one step further by targeting vehicles before the waste is dumped in the first place.
“We’ve now put these people out of business and they face getting possible criminal records, so to all out there thinking you can fly-tip – don’t mess with Croydon.”
You can report fly-tipping by calling our dedicated fly-tipping hotline on 020 8604 7000 or email [email protected]. You can also report a problem via our My Croydon smartphone app.
For more information about the campaign, visit: www.croydon.gov.uk/dontmess (Source: Croydon council press release)
LEWISHAM CLEAN-UP FUNDING AVAILABLE
If your group is eager to improve Lewisham’s streets, parks or public spaces, the Capital Clean-up programme could help.
Grants of between £500 and £1,500 are available, along with clean-up kits (including a £50 voucher).
Previous recipients have used the funding to great effect, organising litter-picks in Lambeth and path-building in Penge.
Capital Clean-up is the Mayor of London’s partnership campaign to help Londoners get together to revamp the city’s environment. It is part of his wider Team London volunteering programme and is supported by McDonald’s.
The deadline for applications is 5pm on 14 March 2016. Please visit www.london.gov.uk/cleanup for more information and application details. (Source: Lewisham council press release.)
RUN, WALK, JOG, OR CYCLE A MILE FOR SPORT RELIEF
Croydon’s local runners, joggers, cyclers, and walkers are invited to come together and raise money for Sports Relief by covering a mile at the council’s South Norwood Sports Arena.
The Sainsbury’s Sport Relief Mile is back on Sunday 20 March and Croydon are recruiting people to take part.
Participants will be helping collect life-changing money for Sport Relief 2016 and will be doing their bit to make a difference to people living both across the UK and in some of the world’s poorest communities.
The ‘Mile’ is set to be an enjoyable event and there will be three separate starts. At 1pm the afternoon kicks off with a ‘wheels for wellbeing cycling mile’, followed at 2pm with the Croydon Harriers’ ‘timed miles’ and then the main ‘fun mile’ is at 3pm. There will be side stalls and additional family activities all day long.
Sport Relief takes place between Friday 18 and Sunday 20 March 2016 and there are more ways than ever for people to take part, change lives, and feel proud. Whether it’s getting sponsored to enter an event at the Sainsbury’s Sport Relief Games or fundraising with friends and family at home, work or school, anyone can help others who are living incredibly tough lives.
Half of all the money raised by the public is spent in the UK, with the other half used to make a difference to poor communities elsewhere in the world.
Enter now at www.sportrelief.com. (Source: Croydon council press release)
CROYDON COUNCIL CONSIDERS PLANS FOR £6MILLION YOUTH FACILITY
Plans to create a new £6m youth facility for young people in Croydon have been unveiled this week.
The purpose-built OnSide ‘youth zone’ would offer affordable activities every day of the week in sports, arts, music, employability and mentoring to young people aged from eight to 19, or up to 25 for those with a disability.
The aim of the joint venture between the council and youth charity OnSide is to raise aspirations, enhance prospects and improve health and wellbeing for young people in Croydon.
The ‘youth zone’, proposed for Whitehorse Road in Thornton Heath, would provide twenty different activities during every session for up to 200 young people. It is set to be discussed for approval at the council’s Cabinet meeting next Monday.
The construction costs for the project would be jointly-funded between the council and the charity, with the council also contributing £300,000 per year towards running costs. OnSide would secure its share of construction and running costs from a combination of private sector supporters and charitable trusts and grants. (Source: Croydon council press release)
CHISLEHURST COULD GET NEW LIBRARY
A development partner has been selected that could eventually see a new purpose built library on the existing Chislehurst library site.
Millngate Chislehurst Ltd has been selected to progress the re-development of the existing Chislehurst library site.
The plans, which will be subject to obtaining planning permission, could see a new modern purpose built library on the first floor with retail space on the ground floor. It is envisaged that the mixed use development would also include residential space as well. (Source: Bromley council press release)
