The Environment Overview and Scrutiny Sub-Committee met to discuss an update on fly-tipping arrangements across the borough, including the outcomes of a recent campaign. The committee also reviewed the Cabinet Forward Plan and discussed the work programme for the upcoming year.

Update on Arrangements for Fly-Tipping

The committee received an update on the council's efforts to tackle fly-tipping, a national issue that has seen an increase in Barnet. Craig Miller, presenting the report, highlighted that a recent communications, community engagement, and enforcement campaign had improved reporting accuracy, strengthened enforcement, and increased community awareness.

Members discussed the correlation between improved reporting mechanisms and the rise in reported incidents, with officers confirming that while easier reporting likely contributed, fly-tipping is a growing national problem. The effectiveness of focused enforcement activity and awareness campaigns in reducing incidents was also a key point of discussion.

Councillor Humayune Khalick raised concerns about variations in bulky waste collections between wards and the accessibility of community skips for residents in unadopted estates. He also enquired about the potential for rolling out lamppost banners used in the campaign more widely. Officers confirmed their willingness to discuss skip locations with ward members and explore options for unadopted estates in collaboration with managing agents and landlords. Regarding the banners, the decision on wider rollout was linked to the overall campaign strategy and resource allocation.

A significant portion of the discussion focused on the data presented. Councillor Dean Cohen MBE, Chair of the committee, highlighted the absence of ward-by-ward breakdowns of fly-tipping incidents, making it difficult to assess the effectiveness of targeted campaigns. Officers acknowledged this gap and committed to providing more granular data, explaining that while daily operations are granular, the campaign focused on ward-level data.

The effectiveness of CCTV enforcement was also debated. While officers confirmed that Barnet Council cameras do not use facial recognition, they are used to capture vehicle registrations. The committee sought clarity on the link between spotted incidents and Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs) issued, with officers explaining that a piece of work would be needed to fully extrapolate this data.

Discussions also covered the council's enforcement powers and fines. Matt Leng, from the enforcement function, detailed the increased FPNs for fly-tipping, now £500 for a first offence and £600 for a second. He confirmed that the council already has powers to seize vehicles, though this is not done frequently due to legal complexities with personal vehicles. The payment rate for FPNs was reported as 71%, with income from FPNs in 2025-26 amounting to £113,000. This income is reinvested into the enforcement team.

Joint enforcement activities with other departments, such as the HMO and private sector housing team, and with neighbouring boroughs were also discussed. Officers confirmed regular liaison and joint operations with authorities in Harrow, Brent, and Enfield.

The issue of feedback to residents who report fly-tipping was raised, with a commitment from officers to improve this process, particularly with the implementation of a new DataWorks management system.

A point of clarification was made regarding the reported decline in fly-tipping in Barnet compared to national trends, with officers explaining that this referred to a specific period and that the current year had seen an increase. Discrepancies in the listed top four wards were also addressed, with officers explaining that Golders Green had been included in error in one section, and that campaign selection was based on data and resident feedback.

The committee discussed the principle of focusing resources on areas of highest prevalence versus expanding the campaign across the borough. Options for a more nuanced approach, such as focusing on specific hotspot locations rather than entire wards, were explored. The potential cost of deployable CCTV cameras was also raised. Ultimately, the committee agreed that officers would work on developing a proposal that focuses on locations rather than wards, using data to identify areas of highest prevalence and considering available resources and budget.

Cabinet Forward Plan

The committee reviewed the Cabinet Forward Plan for 2026-27. Councillor Daus raised concerns about the Heat Network Strategic Outline Case and suggested it should be scrutinised by the Environment Overview and Scrutiny Sub-Committee, or potentially the Finance and Resources committee, rather than being solely handled by the Growth Directorate. It was agreed that this would be confirmed.

Environment Overview & Scrutiny Sub-Committee Work Programme

The committee discussed proposed items for the work programme. Councillor Lewis suggested that dockless bikes should be addressed in two stages: first, enforcement, and second, a task and finish group to work with providers. He also requested a separate, detailed paper on street cleansing options for improvement. Officers agreed to amend the work programme to reflect these requests, noting that the street cleansing paper would be a separate item.

The Highways Utilities Charter was noted as scheduled for review in March, with a potential to bring it forward if possible. The possibility of inviting Thames Water to a future meeting post-charter review was discussed. The annual sustainability report, including preparedness for heatwaves, was also suggested for inclusion in the committee's scrutiny.

Several potential Task and Finish Groups were discussed, including:

• Recycling for flats and flats above shops.
• Highways maintenance and preventative measures.
• Controlled Parking Zones (CPZs), which Councillor Whysall suggested would benefit from a narrower focus than general highway maintenance. Councillor Whysall proposed a Task and Finish Group for CPZs.

The committee agreed to take away the suggestion for a Task and Finish Group on CPZs.

The meeting concluded at 8:35 pm.