A woman has been ordered to pay more than £600 after failing to remove rubbish from her garden.
Lesley Iveson, was asked by Durham County Council to get rid of mattresses, wood, dog faeces and other general waste in her garden following a complaint about the mess.
On 28 June 2017 she was given a warning which gave her seven days to remove the waste, but this had not been done when a neighbourhood warden returned to the property on 12 July.
Although she was then given a Community Protection Notice and another 14 days to clear up the garden, she failed to do so and was issued with a fixed penalty notice. The warden revisited the property on 27 July and noticed that the waste was still present.
He then ordered that the waste be taken away but was later advised that Iveson refused to have certain items removed. When he visited again on 5 October, the waste was still present.
Following a hearing at Newton Aycliffe Magistrates Court, Iveson was given a fine of £450 and ordered to pay £130 costs and a victim surcharge of £45.
A remedial order was also granted, requiring her to carry out the work within 28 days. Should she fail to do so, the matter will be referred back to court requesting she be ordered to pay £50 per day for every day she is in default, or face going to prison.
Ian Hoult, neighbourhood protection manager at Durham County Council, said: “Lesley Iveson was given a number of warnings to remove the waste from her property and refused to do so.
“We are lucky to live in a beautiful county and we want to keep it that way. While we know the vast majority of people do the right thing and get rid of their waste in the correct way, a small minority do not and we hope this case serves as a warning that anyone who refuses to comply with the law could face an expensive day at court.”
As received by the Newton News
