There are more than 620 dog bins installed across Central Bedfordshire. Dog waste can also be bagged and put into litter bins or taken home and put it in the black wheeled bin. Do not throw bags of dog waste into hedges or undergrowth.

If you would like some "No dog fouling" signs to put up where you live, to report a full/ damaged dog bin or to request a bin in a new location please call or email us using the contact details to the right.

Allowing dogs to foul and not clean up after them is illegal as well as being anti-social. Offenders can expect a fixed penalty notice of £50 or prosecution in some cases.

Estimates put the British dog population at around 6.8 million, producing 900 tonnes of faeces per day.

Dog walkers must scoop their dog mess up from all designated land to which the public have access.

Designated land

• Footways and paths, including public footpaths
• Play areas, picnic sites and outdoor eating places
• Sports playing pitches, including five metre border
• Formal parks and land where the grass is cut
• Land outside schools and hospitals
• Car parks, public transport bays and surrounds
• Cycle ways and surfaced areas near to houses
• Shopping areas, markets and public circulation areas
• Cemeteries and war memorials
• Land surrounding toilets, recycling sites and public buildings

If you spot someone who hasn't cleared up after their dog then you should note what happened as soon as possible. Where known, include the name and address of the person in charge of the dog, a description of the dog plus details of the date, time and place of the offence.

If you want to report a problem with dog mess or to report dog fouling, please call or email customer services.

What should dog owners do?

Responsible owners do not allow their dogs to foul public places. Ideally, dogs should be trained from an early age to 'go at home' in their own garden before or after a walk, rather than during. If dog fouling does occur away from home the responsible owner will clean up after the dog.

Any suitable plastic bag can be used, or special poop-scoop bags can be purchased from pet shops, veterinary surgeries or stores. Dispose of faeces in a poop-scoop bin or take the bag home.

Littering is an offence - if you are seen littering you could be fined with a fixed penalty notice.

Central Bedfordshire covers an area of 716 square kilometres, with a number of major road networks running through the area. This means that there is a considerable length of highway verge that is mostly covered in grass.

Central Bedfordshire Council is responsible for cutting the majority of grass that is publically owned eg. highway verges and amenity areas. However, there are many areas that are maintained by Town and Parish Councils, Housing Associations, developers or voluntary bodies. If you want to know who is responsible for what grass, please contact us.

In fulfilling its responsibilities as Highway Authority, Central Bedfordshire is required to keep verges safe and unobstructed and this is particularly important at road junctions where clear visibility for motorists and pedestrians is necessary. We are not required to cut grass for aesthetic appearances.

In rural areas, a number of grass verges have been designated as roadside nature reserves as they contain rare or endangered species of flora/fauna. Here the grass cutting regime is tailored to suit.

If you feel that you need to report a situation please send details by emailing or calling us using the contact details to the right.

When reporting please include:

• Details of the nature of the problem
• The exact location, if possible
• Road name or number
• Specific details of the location of the verge

Council contractors cover street cleansing of urban and rural areas of Central Bedfordshire on set schedules. The frequency of these schedules is determined by the type of area, litter concentration and level of detritus.

We work with our contractors to resource problem areas accordingly. To report an area suffering with litter, gullies that needs sweeping or leaf fall on highway or Council maintained land, please contact Customer Services.

The flytipping of controlled waste is a serious criminal offence, which carries a fine of up to £20,000 (unlimited if indicted to the Crown Court), or an offender can even be sent to prison. It is important to realise that it is also an offence to knowingly allow your waste to be flytipped.

Flytipping is often associated with dumping waste from vehicles. In this case the person controlling the use of the vehicle can also be prosecuted, which means that it is possible for a prosecution to occur when only the vehicle, not the driver, is identifiable.

If you are employing a tradesman to work on your home, it is your responsibility (see link to the DEFRA website) to make sure that they (or the skip company) are Registered Waste Carriers.  They should give you a waste transfer note for your waste which details what the waste is and where and when it is removed from your premises.

If you discover flytipped waste after the tippers have left, please follow these simple dos and don'ts:

• do not touch the waste: flytipped waste can be dangerous - it may contain syringes, broken glass, asbestos, toxic chemicals or other hazardous substances.
• visually inspect the waste: try to determine what the waste consists of and how much there is.
• take note of its exact location and whether it is in or near water.
• do not disturb the site: there may be evidence that could help identify the culprits and lead to their prosecution.
  

If you see someone flytipping, please make a note of:

• The day, date and time you saw the tipping
• What you saw
• How many people were flytipping and what they looked like
• What they were actually doing
• Any vehicles involved - the make, colour and registration number
• Where were you when you saw the flytipping
• What kind of view you had
• How far away you were
• Weather and light conditions
• What was tipped
• How much was tipped
• What it looked like

You need to report this information to Customer Services by calling or emailing ensuring you include as much detail as possible.

• Put litter in a bin
• If there are no bins, take your litter home

We have street cleansing operatives who are responsible for emptying these bins on a regular basis to ensure that no bin is overflowing.  If you wish to report a litter bin that is full then please contact Customer Services by calling, or email using the contact details on the right.