Cleaner neighbourhoods
through community-led
partnerships
Our Place programme
Table of Contents
Introduction ................................................................................................ 3
Context ...................................................................................................... 4
Population mobility............................................................................................... 6
Fly tipping of commercial items ............................................................................... 7
Fines ................................................................................................................ 7
Our Place partnerships in this case study ............................................................ 8
Elswick, Newcastle upon Tyne, North East ................................................................. 9
Highfields Estate in Halesowen, Dudley, West Midlands .................................................. 9
Whalley Banks, Blackburn with Darwen, Lancashire, North West ....................................... 9
Darnall, Sheffield, Yorkshire and Humber ................................................................. 10
What do the stakeholders stand to gain from an integrated partnership approach? ............... 11
Councils ......................................................................................................... 11
Businesses and the local economy .......................................................................... 11
Residents, including community groups and community forums........................................ 12
The natural environment ..................................................................................... 12
The Fire service, Police and local health services ........................................................ 12
Agencies such as British Waterways, Highways England and Network Rail ............................ 12
What has been the impact? ............................................................................. 13
Awareness raising................................................................................................ 13
Skills development for small businesses and local people ............................................... 16
‘Friends of’ groups .............................................................................................. 16
Preventative measures ......................................................................................... 16
Cost Benefit Analysis ............................................................................................ 17
Key elements of success ................................................................................ 18
What have you learnt? ................................................................................... 19
Contact details ............................................................................................ 21
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Introduction
This thematic case study is about how community engagement and preventative measures can
be taken in partnership to support cleaner neighbourhoods. It draws on the experiences of
four community groups, statutory services and local businesses working together to deal with
fly-tipping and littering in their localities.
Neighbourhood outdoor spaces are the responsibility of a combination of:

District, County and Unitary authorities, and Town and Parish Councils

Road, rail and waterway agencies

Housing providers

Private landowners

Businesses

Community organisations

Local residents.
In this case study we look at four examples of when local residents, councils and businesses
have worked together to make neighbourhoods cleaner. It is early days for all of these examples,
but they are all pioneering in their employment of an inclusive partnership approach to tackle
a priority issue. It should be of interest and inspiration to other communities, councils and
partners who have prioritised environmental and street scene concerns.
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Context
Fly-tipping is the dumping of household items and business waste on a large or small scale. For
example, household items left in public spaces when moving, shopping trollies on the street,
business waste in alleyways, and environmental crimes, such as dumping tyres. Littering is when
smaller items, such as fast food wrappers, are not put in the bin.
Councils and communities are concerned by litter, uncollected rubbish and fly-tipped items.
The main reasons for this are:

Financial costs: Landfill, rubbish trucks and the administration of fixed penalty notices
cost money

Effects on the local economy: People are less likely to visit or spend money in areas
that are blighted by litter and not cared for

Antisocial behaviour: Rubbish poses a potential arson risk and can attract other
antisocial behaviour

Environmental: There are risks to wildlife and human health, for example toxic run-off
into waterways

Health and wellbeing of residents: It is also claimed that litter can indirectly impact
negatively on the health and wellbeing of people1.
“Street scene problems are multi-faceted and require a joined up response from a
number of agencies, working in partnership with the community.”
- Blackburn with Darwen Council
The Our Place approach, with its emphasis on practical steps that communities, public bodies
and businesses can take together to redesign services at a neighbourhood level, is well placed
to address littering and fly-tipping. The emphasis on cross-sector partnerships is key, as
littered and fly-tipped areas are managed by various stakeholders. Our Place brings together
1
See Written evidence submitted by Keep Britain Tidy to the Litter and fly-tipping in England, Communities and
Local Government Committee, 2014-15.
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the relevant stakeholders and, in these examples, does so in an enjoyable and motivating way,
fostering a sense of neighbourhood pride. In particular, fun, highly visible, small scale and
welcoming public events are having an impact, alongside activities to engage small businesses
such as free training. A neighbourhood approach makes this all feel manageable for the
partners involved and provides a sense of working together for mutual benefit. The Local
Government Association’s local waste review ‘Wealth from waste’ also underlines the
importance of local collaboration between council and communities.
The financial savings are also clear. For example, each week Blackburn with Darwen Council
cleansing team address two to three fly-tipping incidents in Whalley Bank at an average cost of
£300 a time. In the future there is a target to reduce this by up to 50% as a result of proactive
working with business and residents.
“It is precisely the role of councils, with their democratic mandate, to determine with
their residents how to deliver the best service and how to fund it.”
- The Local Government Association, Wealth from waste, The LGA local waste review
(2013).
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The preventative approaches outlined here also provide social benefits. As well as addressing
fly-tipping and littering, these partnerships are also building skills and addressing social isolation
by getting a cross-section of the community involved in the issue.
The partnerships faced a number of challenges which are underlying factors for littering and
fly-tipping locally.
In particular:

Population mobility – the flow of people into and out of a district, partly as a result of
local environmental concerns

Fly-tipping of commercial items

Fines not proving to be an effective deterrent.
Population mobility
The four neighbourhoods in this case study are seen as less desirable areas locally, partly
because of the litter and dumped items. In some cases people are housed temporarily. When
they move out they abandon their furniture, which also gives the neighbourhood a deprived
and transitional feel. This makes some residents want to move on. It’s a classic vicious circle.
The neighbourhoods examined here also have a higher than average proportion of immigrant
communities. In places where English as a first language is limited, the use of leaflets and signs
written in English can be less effective. Door-to-door awareness raising can be resource
intensive as a result.
People’s financial situations can also impact on the success of local communications. For
example, one area reported that internet access is not a financial priority for some people in
the ward. Therefore, they cannot as easily search online for furniture collection services, even
if they are free.
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Low car ownership compounds the issue. People cannot easily take unwanted items to their
resource recovery centre, and are unwilling or unable to pay for doorstop pick-ups.
Fly tipping of commercial items
The more urban and suburban areas amongst the partnerships have high business footfall,
making them popular with fast-food outlets. This produces more instances of littering and flytipping of industrial catering products, for example:

A bath sized volume of pizza dough was found in an alleyway in Whalley Banks

In the Highfields Estate there was a build-up of shopping trolleys

Darnall, with its quiet roads, suffered larger scale environmental crime, such as the
dumping of white goods in roadside woods.
Fines
‘Fly-tipping tourists’ may assume that they will not be reported if they have previously flytipped with no consequences, and as a result one of the areas, Darnell, is keen to increase the
fear of fines amongst large scale fly-tippers. However, for smaller scale offences, ‘after the
fact’ fines were questioned by a council for adding to their administration costs and for
increasing the risk of the personal debt burden within the neighbourhood, thus negatively
affecting the relationship between the council and residents.
“Prosecution means the local authority is seen as fining rather than supporting
things”.
- Blackburn with Darwen Council Officer
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Our Place partnerships in this case study
The areas all focus on community engagement to deter fly-tipping and littering and are involving
the following partners in the cause:

Community groups and residents

Local shops, businesses and enterprises (particularly in Blackburn with Darwen who offer
businesses incentives to get involved)

A variety of different council services

Other statutory services, e.g. the Fire Service

Local housing providers

Local schools in the case of Blackburn with Darwen and Darnell.
“This project is not about putting new bins out. It’s about engaging residents to
redesign the services.”
- Blackburn with Darwen Council Officer
All of the areas have been concerned with fly-tipping and littering for some years, and have
held regular community litter-pick activities. They are now each stepping up their game. Local
residents and businesses are operating alongside councils, redesigning waste services so they
are better at addressing fly-tipping and littering. In particular, the areas are seeking outcomes
that can be achieved in parallel with preventative work such as:

Addressing engagement challenges through highly visible community activities

Skills development for small businesses and other local people.
The Elswick Our Place area describes their vision well: “To engage residents, businesses and
local stakeholders, making use of the community spirit and unique identity of the area to
create a clean and cared for local environment that is valued, shared and enjoyed by all”.
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The four Our Place partnership areas are:
Elswick, Newcastle upon Tyne, North East
Elswick is a ward in the western part of the city of Newcastle upon Tyne. The ward contains
neighbourhoods ranked amongst the 10% most deprived in England, and has a population of
just over 13,000 people. The Our Place Lead partner is Jet North.
Highfields Estate in Halesowen, Dudley, West Midlands
The Highfields estate is home to approximately 3,000 people. It is in Halesowen, which is
about 7 miles south west of Birmingham. Largely urban and suburban, Halesowen straddles
neighbourhoods that are amongst the 10% and 30% most deprived in England, as well as those
amongst the 20% least deprived. The Our Place Lead partner is The Centre for Equality and
Diversity.
Whalley Banks, Blackburn with Darwen, Lancashire, North West
This concentrates on the main road leading into the large town of Blackburn. Whalley Banks is
one of the 10% most deprived neighbourhoods in the country. It is situated in the ward of
Wensley Fold which has a population of just over 7,300 people. The Our Place Lead partner is
Blackburn with Darwen Council.
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Darnall, Sheffield, Yorkshire and Humber
Darnall is an eastern suburb of Sheffield, with a
population
of
just
over
10,600
people.
Unemployment grew locally after the steel
industry decline of the 1970s and the ward
contains neighbourhoods that are amongst the
10% most deprived in England. The main issues in
this ward are a stretch of road surrounded by
woods. The Our Place lead partner is Darnall
Forum, a long-standing community led forum.
Each area received funding and support through
the Our Place programme, delivered by Locality
and funded by the Department for Communities
and
Local
Government.
The
partnerships
Image from Darnall Forum’s Operational Plan
developed a logic model showing expected inputs and impact and expanded this into an
operational plan showing how the projects are informed by the community, how the
partnership are managed, and how their plans will be implemented. Darnell, Blackburn with
Darwen and Elswick also undertook a ‘Cost Benefit Analysis’.
Highfields have been implementing their project for the past year, (see below for examples of
their awareness-raising activities and community projects, including the installation of window
boxes and vegetable growing). The other three areas are just about to start implementation.
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What do the stakeholders stand to gain from an integrated partnership
approach?
There are a range of common benefits that the partnerships have identified in their operational
plans:
Councils
Waste disposal is one of the main duties of a local council. Removing fly tipped waste adds to
this cost. Potential gains include financial savings and improved reputation.
“Elswick topped the Council’s table as a fly tipping hot spot. Warning letters citywide cost the Council almost £47,000 last year on top of an estimated £63,000 in
investigations…we can estimate the costs in the ward to amount to £8,250”.
- Elswick Operational Plan
Businesses and the local economy
A littered and fly-tipped area feels less safe and attracts fewer people to visit. People do not
linger or spend as much locally. A cleaner area feels safer and attracts more people to visit and
to stay longer. More visitors means more money spent locally.
“57% of people in England think litter is a problem, with people less likely to visit or
spend time in places that are littered”.
- ‘When it comes to litter: which side of the fence are you on?’ Keep Britain Tidy
(2013)
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Residents, including community groups and community forums
Local people foot the bill through their council tax for clean-ups of public spaces. Gains include
living in a visibly attractive, cleaner and more appealing neighbourhood.
“…in 2014 the clearance of one local site alone cost £17,000. In 2014-15 the Council
attended a total of 846 incidents in Darnall Ward to remove waste from fly tipping”.
- Darnall Operational Plan
The natural environment
This suffers the effects of pollution, e.g. from abandoned fridges. Pets and wildlife are harmed
by rubbish on land and in the waterways. Gains include financial savings from less pollution,
and a thriving wildlife habitat for plants and animals.
The Fire service, Police and local health services
Litter and fly-tipping represent a fire risk, encourage anti-social behaviour and can affect
public health. Gains include financial savings and less air pollution due to fewer service
vehicles in operation.
“Street scene issues and environmental crime in the area are consistently in the top
three priorities at each (Neighbourhood Policing Team) meeting.”
- Blackburn with Darwen Operational Plan
Agencies such as British Waterways, Highways England and Network Rail
They have a duty to keep their land and waterways clean. These agencies stand to save
money if there is less need for clearing litter. In particular, less litter and fly-tipping means
their land and waterways do not pose a safety hazard to people, plants and animals.
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What has been the impact?
Awareness raising
What we see in these four Our Place examples is the
power of small actions - a few people starting to do
something noticeable and fun to address the issue and
engage a diverse range of residents.
For example, a Trolley Parade in the Highfields Estate
involved neighbours transforming supermarket trollies
into swans, whales and mythological beasts, and
returning them to the supermarket in a carnival
atmosphere. This highly visible awareness raising
activity showed that people cared about the issue and provided opportunities to join in without
needing English language skills.
Similar examples of effective awareness raising and community engagement activities include:

Planting schemes: Community seed and bulb planting is taking place in Darnall, and in
the Highfields Estate people planted hanging baskets together.

Walkabouts: In Whalley Banks trading standards officers did walkabouts, photographing
the abundant rubbish dumped around bins. Businesses and residents approached, asking
how they could get involved in preventing littering. This was the beginning of engaging
ten local businesses in a ‘Friends of Whalley Banks’ group.
“I did my first walkabout with a couple of community development officers – council
workers and a person from trading standards - and we walked down this stretch taking
pictures of bins… A man offered to help and was our first contact for our friends group…
Then a man from a chicken shop came out and wanted to be involved, then a resident
wanted to get involved.”
- Blackburn with Darwen Council Officer.
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
Visual based workshops: Visual
activity appeals across ages and
languages,
opportunities
maximising
for
neighbours
to
share ideas. These pictures, for
example,
illustrate
the
neighbourhood mapping technique
used successfully in the Highfields
Estate early on in their community
consultation
people
in
process
to
democratic
engage
decision
making and co-design local waste solutions.

Social media has been used effectively to create a ‘buzz’ locally about tackling littering
and fly-tipping and, in particular, to show recognition of volunteers’ efforts, as
demonstrated by these examples from Darnall:
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
Short film: The Elswick ward have raised funds to make an information film which will
be shown in doctors surgeries and other places that local people go to regularly. The
Elswick partnership felt that this would be a better way to get the important information
across rather than leaflets, which may themselves become litter. Whalley Banks are
making a documentary film, led by the secondary school nearest to the main road into
Blackburn. This will hopefully give the young people involved a sense of ownership about
the issue as well as helping them to develop new media skills.

Local press: Areas have also found that their local press has taken note of their project
when there have been fun and ‘news-worthy’ initiatives that involve the community.
Highfields discovered that community-led activities are an effective method for gaining
the interest of their local press.
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Skills development for small businesses and local people
A ‘carrot’ to accompany the ‘stick’ of fines, is to build local skills and offer training. In Whalley
Banks, for example, the council has offered the following benefits to local businesses who sign
up to the project, including:

A dedicated public protection helpline

One hour free advice on food hygiene

Publicity for registered businesses through the councils public relations team

Access to relevant training courses such as food allergen regulations.
‘Friends of’ groups
Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council are trialling a number of ways to crack the issue of
engagement via ‘Friends of’ groups. They are starting small, demonstrating activity and
commitment and bringing people on board. The partnership element will be key to this, showing
that the neighbourhood litter issue is everyone’s job, not just the council’s. Ten businesses
were attracted to their first skills development workshop, the first stage of forming a ‘Friends
of’ group, and they have gained commitment from the neighbourhood policing, highways and
environment teams that they will also engage with the new ‘Friends of’ group.
The films and co-design activities described above are also a way to build skills.
Preventative measures
Areas hope that small preventative interventions will have a big impact. For example, Highfields
Estate residents worked with the council following the ‘big clean up’ with a new initiative to
log when a tenant is leaving, this ensures that a forwarding address is provided and it enables
the council to send them a bill for the removal of any items left behind.
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“Until this programme very few people have given them the skills or at least approached
them to say we need your help to brighten up the estate. This has made a difference to
them”.
- The Centre for Equality and Diversity (Highfields Estate lead)
Cost Benefit Analysis2
Three of the four areas have undertaken a Cost Benefit Analysis using the tool and support
provided by New Economy, who were a delivery partner in the Our Place programme. All of the
CBAs showed a positive Public Value Return on Investment, with every £1 spent predicted to
produce a fiscal saving to the public sector as follows:

Elswick - £1.70

Darnell £7.86

Blackburn with Darwen - £14.22.
The savings identified in the CBAs will depend on the individual proposition being modelled,
but in these cases they are predicted to mainly benefit the councils involved, contractors and
housing providers. The budgets of other agencies such as the Police and Fire services are also
predicted to benefit (as a result of outcomes such as reduced incidents of nuisance fires), but
to a smaller degree.
In conclusion, although hard outcomes such as a reduction in rubbish are yet to become
apparent, residents and local businesses in these Our Place examples have benefited from:
2

More opportunities to spend time with one another

More volunteering opportunities

Ways to influence local decision-making processes
CBA figures were correct at time of publication but may change as the project develops.
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
The development of a range of added-value skills such as partnership development,
poster design and event organisation.
In addition, there is also a clear business case for councils and other agencies to take part.
Key elements of success
An
inclusive
partnership
with
representation from all stakeholders:
For
example,
including
council
departments, community groups and
businesses. Lead partners should ensure
that
organisations
immigrant
overlooked.
communities
Churches,
representing
are
not
resident’s
associations and youth groups can all play
an important role in raising awareness.
Other public bodies such as the Police and Fire services also have a stake in this issue.
Support from small business is key: Retailers have a vital role to play in terms of the
responsible disposal of trade waste and for educating consumers about the impact of littering.
Councillors can play an important brokering role in engaging small businesses. Walkabouts have
proven effective in recruiting advocates from the high street.
A worker who focuses on coordinating activity: This can be someone either within the council
or a community organisation. It might be a full-time role or part of someone’s existing job,
however, their focus should include sourcing funds such as small grants that can pay for room
hire and refreshments, enabling people to meet. Councils should explore how these kinds of
activities can be supported with ward budgets.
Design meaningful opportunities to get stakeholders involved: Offering something to each
stakeholder, be it a financial or social benefit, is important to secure and maintain their
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interest. For example, the council can offer training to businesses, and a community group can
provide fun engagement and skills development opportunities for a wide range of people living
in the neighbourhood.
A Cost Benefit Analysis illustrates the financial benefits: Public bodies with waste disposal as
a statutory duty may be persuaded to participate if there is a business case for investment that
outweighs the costs.
What have you learnt?
What we have seen in this thematic case study is that people are often drawn together by a
desire to improve their neighbourhood’s appearance. If activity is coordinated and resourced
properly, and if the incentives are right, solving something which is harmful or disagreeable to
the community such as fly-tipping and littering brings neighbours together. This social action
can grow and have a major impact on a neighbourhood. There is evidence from some of the
areas that they now have wider ambitions as a result of getting people together to solve this
issue (see panel right).
“The next phase is service transformation and that’s about public sector services
aligning or pooling their budgets which would be done in conjunction with residents.
The vision is for the estate to have its own management committee for the public sector
agencies to work with and ensure the residents have more say on the budgets”.
- The Centre for Equality and Diversity (Highfields Estate lead)
The proactive approaches in these Our Place areas are designed in contrast to the traditional
ways of confronting fly-tipping and littering through ‘after the event’ fines issued by councils.
Although establishing the relative merits of fines as opposed to other methods is outside of the
scope of this case study, the rationale behind these Our Place approaches is to engage
communities in a deeper conversation about the benefits of small and coordinated actions, thus
embedding culture change locally.
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Visible and inclusive neighbourhood events, alongside education and training opportunities
emphasise a preventative approach to discourage fly-tipping and littering. The message from
all areas is: ‘Let’s all do our bit. Just cleaning up your front garden makes a real difference.’
The efforts of volunteers have been publicly acknowledged and social media and the local press
have been utilised to communicate successes. The ‘voice’ of the local community has even been
employed to reinforce codes of behaviour. Darnall, for example, suffers from industrial fly
tipping and the message to would-be environmental criminals is ‘people care about this area
and will report your crimes.’
The examples in this case study should serve as inspiration to other community-led partnerships
looking to implement a virtuous circle that involves residents, businesses and stakeholders in
discussions about how fly-tipping and littering can be addressed at a neighbourhood level.
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Contact details
Darnall Forum
Neil Bishop
[email protected]
www.darnall.org.uk
Blackburn with Darwen Council
Tim Birch
[email protected]
www.blackburnbid.co.uk
Centre for Equality and Diversity (Highfields Estate)
Kenneth Rodney
[email protected]
www.cfed.org.uk
Jet North
Khatoon Khan
[email protected]
www.jetnorth.org.uk
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