Farmers’ fields and country lanes are being buried under piles of waste, with new figures showing fly-tipping in England has hit record highs with a 9% year-on-year increase in fly-tipping incidents. Breakdowns of some key factors in North sub-regions (North West; North East; Yorkshire and the Humber) are included below.
From sofas and fridges to large-scale builders’ waste, illegal dumpers are turning farmland into rubbish tips — leaving their victims paying to clear up the mess.
The latest statistics, released today, reveal councils in England dealt with 1.26 million incidents, an increase of 9% from the 1.15 million reported in 2023/24.
Many fly-tipping incidents occur on privately-owned land, painting an even more damaging picture of the financial burden and environmental impact fly-tipping brings.
The Country Land and Business Association (CLA) represents farmers and rural businesses.
CLA President Gavin Lane said: “Farmers and land managers have had enough. The countryside is increasingly being targeted by organised crime gangs – often violent – who know that rural areas are under-policed and resourced.
“It’s not just litter blotting the landscape, but tonnes of household and commercial waste which can often be hazardous – even including asbestos and chemicals – endangering wildlife, livestock, crops and the environment. Farmers are victims yet have to pay clean up costs themselves.
“We need to see penalties being enforced that better reflect the severity of the crime, and the seizure of vehicles must be the default penalty to send a clear signal that criminals will face real consequences if they are caught fly-tipping.”
There have been several high-profile incidents recently, from the 30,000 tonnes of waste dumped in ancient woodland at Hoad’s Wood in Kent, to 20,000 tonnes next to the River Cherwell and A34 in Kidlington, Oxfordshire.
Figures for the North of England sub-regions
Total number of fly-tipping incidents by sub-region – year on year:
| Sub-region | Incidents (2023-24) | Incidents (2024-25) |
| North East | 68,269 | 65,182 |
| North West | 133,578 | 145,109 |
| Yorks & Humber | 85,568 | 100,370 |
Fixed Penalty Notices issued specifically for fly-tipping across the North
North East: 319 (Newcastle-upon-Tyne issued the most = 73; whereas Stockton-on-Tees issued 0)
North West: 942 (Tameside issued the most = 224; whereas the following councils issued no FPNs: Chorley, Lancaster, Liverpool, Ribble Valley, St Helens, Wirral)
Yorkshire & the Humber: 823 (Rotherham issued the most = 341; and North East Lincolnshire and North Lincolnshire the least at 1 each)
Vehicles seized across the North
North East: 15 (Sunderland seized 6)
North West: 32 (Cumberland seized 10)
Yorkshire & the Humber: 20 (Calderdale seized 6)
Fines issued by Courts (Less than £20k, with the majority under £500)
North East: 111 (County Durham issued 30 fines)
North West: 490 (Manchester issued 340 fines)
Yorkshire & the Humber: 195 (Kingston-upon-Hull issued 114)
CLA North Rural Adviser, and national CLA lead on fly-tipping, Jane Harrison, said:
“Householders whose waste is fly-tipped can be prosecuted, so if you pay someone to dispose of your rubbish, make sure they have a Waste Carriers Licence or their fly-tipping could be your responsibility.” Householders who are identified from their fly-tipped waste can be issued with Fixed Penalty Notice fines of up to £600.
“Two-thirds of all farmers and landowners have at some stage been a victim. But hundreds of thousands of offences on private land are going unrecorded, as farmers often have so little faith in the ability of the police or council to deal with fly-tipping that they simply bear the cost of removing rubbish themselves.”
“We are calling for local authorities to help clear fly-tipping incidents on private as well as public land, while the various enforcement agencies must be properly trained and resourced. If you think you have seen illegal waste activity, help stop it by reporting it anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.”
“While courts can sentence offenders to prison or unlimited fines, prosecutions are rare and criminals clearly do not fear the system.”
The CLA is also calling for:
· The appointment of a national fly-tipping commissioner to co-ordinate agencies, monitor incidents on private land and benchmark enforcement performance.
· The enforcement of fines for businesses and homeowners whose waste is found dumped.
· More support for victims via a new permit scheme to allow farmers who did not cause or knowingly permit the fly-tipping to dispose of it at a waste disposal site free of charge.
A CLA survey found almost three quarters of farmers who responded are affected each year, with some targeted multiple times each month. Each incident costs on average £1,000 to clear up, with 85% saying they have invested in measures such as CCTV, lighting and other security.
CLA members speak out
Francis Fitzherbert-Brockholes from Claughton Hall in Lancashire said: “Our most recent fly-tipping incident was a trailer load of old roofing timbers dumped in a gateway. It took one of our estate workers and I – with the aid of a JCB Load – about three hours to remove and dispose of the rubbish properly.
“These fly-tipping figures barely scratch the surface of a crime that’s blighting rural communities, with incidents on private land going unrecorded on a mass scale. We are calling for local authorities to help clear fly-tipping incidents on private as well as public land, while the various enforcement agencies must be properly trained and resourced.”
Beilby Forbes Adam from Escrick Park in North Yorkshire said: “We usually experience between 20 and 30 fly-tipping incidents per year, which, aside from being an annoyance, is costly to clear up. It ranges from trailer loads of garden waste to van-loads of rubble and rubbish from house renovations to smaller loads gas canisters and tyres.
“Our team at Escrick Park collects fly-tipped materials, and once a skip is filled, we would pay for the disposal of it. Fly-tipping is particularly frequent on Skipwith Common, a National Nature Reserve.
“With the current government increasing the Landfill Tax Standard Rate by 26% and the Lower Rate by 162% since entering power, an unfortunate byproduct of the policy is that fly-tipping in the countryside will only increase.
“Ministers should look urgently at making it easier for councils to crack down by meting out proper penalties for convicted fly-tippers and providing funding for them to take on the responsibility of clearing up fly-tipping.”
A spokesperson for Colesbourne Estate in Gloucestershire said: “We have experienced regular fly-tipping for several years, but we have suffered particularly over the last few months. Since November we have had three lorry loads of cannabis waste – mostly soil and roots – as well as household waste tipped on our land. This isn’t just small amounts – it’s been 75 bags each time.
“We’ve also had three lots of old motor tyres discarded, which were taken into the far end of the fields. Again, this was between 50 and 60 tyres dumped on each occasion. There’s also been a lot of building waste, particularly plaster board, which gets dumped because skip hire companies will no longer take this, and a large amount of damaged plastic car body work.
“It costs a lot of money for us to clear it up each time. The problem is aggravated because you need an appointment to go to the local authority recycling centres and they are closed for longer periods during the winter months. The long, dry period last summer made it easier for lorries to get on the field. We aren’t always able to put barriers in gateways where access is frequently needed to stop people from gaining getting on the fields.”
