Agenda item

These must be received no later than 12 noon on Wednesday 12 February.

Three Member questions were received.  The written responses were taken as read.

1.   Questionfrom Councillor David Willinghamto Cabinet Member for Safety and Communities, Councillor Victoria Atherstone

Could the Cabinet Member please confirm whether this council has any historic Street Litter Control Notices still in force,and whether are there anyCommunity Protection Noticescurrently inforce inrespect oftackling littering.If so, couIdthe Cabinet Member please provide details of where andto whom these notices currently apply?

CabinetMember response

There are no StreetLitter Controlnotices; theseare nowcalled CPNs(Community Protection Notices). We also havePublic SpaceProtection Orders (PSPO) that includes littering,and there is aPSPO livefor theentire borough, where locations have been highlighted to bean issue ofenviro-crime and thiscovers Cheltenham­ widelocations.There arealso PSPOs in place in green spaces tospecify dog control and alcohol use.

2.  Questionfrom Councillor David Willinghamto CabinetMember for Safety and Communities, Councillor Victoria Atherstone

I understandCommunity Protection Notices(CPN) havenow replacedStreet Litter Control Notices butCPNs do still givecouncils the powers toforce businesses to clear litter fromaround their premises andto take steps to prevent future ittering. Could the Cabinet Member please advise whether  these CPNs can be issued pre-emptively based upon previous litterissues elsewhere, and if not,what evidence thecouncil wouldneed tocommence action,how thisevidence wouldneed to be presented to the council, and by whom?

CabinetMember response

A CPN can be used for an issueof litterin a locationcaused by abusiness, as this can been seen asa trade waste offence, and can include mitigation and management of thewaste produced by thebusiness and itscustomers. Thiscan lead to further receptacles being provided forcustomers and business staff frequently servicing the units toensure usage by the customer on site and surrounding area.If thereis an issueof litteringin thearea bycustomers due tothe use of the business then this is considered an offence and a fixed penalty notice (FPN) can be issued to the individual, whether in a vehicle oron foot.Thelocal authoritywould needto receivereports ofthis takingplace, soa service requestcan beraised foran officerto attendand investigate themost appropriate mitigation process.

A CPN cannot be issuedpre-emptively as evidence needsto beascertained to confirm theoffence andissue isapparent, andalarm, harassmentand distressare having a detrimental effect on the surrounding community.

Thiscan be evidenced usingthe reporting toolfunction for litteringor fly-tippingthat will trigger an investigation to the patch officer.

3.      Questionfrom Councillor David Willinghamto Cabinet Member for Safety and Communities,Councillor Victoria Atherstone

Could theCabinet Memberplease give mean assurance that if alitter problem can beevidenced as resulting from a specific vendor, thatthe council will take robust enforcement action,including issuinga Community ProtectionNotice (CPN)to hold thebusiness accountablefor thecosts of dealingwith litterthat endsup in thepublic realm, and advise whatother littercontrol powers the council could targetin this area?

CabinetMember response

If reportsare receivedof litteroffences beingcommitted onsite orsurrounding areas bythe customers usingthe premises, then enforcement action will take place via evidence received ora Neighbourhood officer who will attendthe location reported and evidence an offence taking place.If there is apersistent issue, mobile CCTV canbe erectedto monitorand enforceoffences fromvehicles andactions anti-social in nature in such as littering and fly-tipping.

If thebusiness isevidenced to bebreaching wastemanagement legislation andnot mitigating the issueof sitewaste, aCPN can beissued dueto thedetrimental effect on the surrounding community; this would provide a listof requirements for improvement and rectification.