Transcript
ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT Leeds City Council stoppingillegal flyposting OBJECTIVE To stop illegal flyposting in Leeds. PURPOSE To seek an improvement in the visual street environment by providing sites whereflyposting can legally be carried out, removing other material and taking strongenforcement action against illegal flyposters.Leeds City Council will not tolerate attaching illegal advertising (flyposting) to streetfurniture, structures and buildings. Legal advertising (poster drums) sites will requirethe necessary planning permission.Flyposting is mainly carried out in Leeds to advertise local events, the majority of which are held on licensed premises. There is also a lesser amount of goods;records, shops etc being advertised. SCOPE This policy will apply to all property unless the private owner has sanctioned thedisplay and obtained the relevant planning permission. The policy addresses publicbuildings and structures as well as private property. This policy is limited to materialsstuck to structures using glues, blutack, sellotape etc. Placards and graffiti will bedealt with in separate policy documents which will follow similar principles. LINKTOCOUNCILPLAN Looking after the environment is one of the five key aims in the plan. Improving thephysical appearance and condition of the streets and immediate surroundings toimprove quality of life helps support this aim.The presence of flyposting encourages a spiral of decline, which can underminecommunity cohesion and the efforts of public agencies.The presence of flyposting, graffiti, flyers etc can exacerbate the fear of crime;undermine local investment in regeneration; and adversely affect education,aspirations and jobs. Conversely, tackling environmental crime sends a message to acommunity that things can improve and encourages the establishment of a stronger,more confident local community. ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT Leeds City Council This Policy contributes to The Vision for Leeds 2004-2020 to make Leeds aninternationally competitive city and the best place in the country to live, work andlearn, with a high quality of life for everyone. APPLICATIONOFTHEENVIRONMENTALENFORCEMENTPOLICY Action against individuals caught flyposting Paragraph 5.3 - Prosecution and par 5.3.1 - community benefit apply to theproblem of flyposting. Legal action will therefore be taken on each occasion anoffence is evidenced due to the extreme improbability that that person will bewitnessed committing the offence again. Paragraph 5.2 - Fixed penalty notices allows for the use of fixed penalty noticeswhere the legislation allows. This will be applied through The Anti Social BehaviourAct 2003. Action against beneficiaries of the flyposter Paragraph 5.3.- ProsecutionParagraph 5.3.4/5.3.5 - Failure to comply with lawful requirements and history of non-compliance apply to the problem of flyposting.Legal action will be taken when there is a breach of legislation following a writtennotice as required by the legislation. LEGISLATION The main pieces of legislation that will be used are: ❚❘ Highways Act 1980 ❚❘ Town and Country Planning Act 1990 & The Town and Country Planning (Control of Advertisements) Regulations 1992. ❚❘ Anti Social Behaviour Act 2003 - Pt 6 & Pt 9 ❚❘ Local Government Act 1972 Section 222Further details are contained in Appendix 1 ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT Leeds City Council POLICY Poster Drums These provide a lawful outlet for this type of advertising and therefore provide analternative to illegal flyposting. There are 49 drums and 14 boards in the city centreand 30 more drums outside the centre. A third party company operates the drumsites. This company also informs the local authority about other flyposting andremoves this.Additional drums will be added to the scheme as they receive the relevantpermissions. Burley Road, Chapeltown and Harehills are being developed as the nextfavoured locations for roll out.All flyposters placed on sites without proper permissions will be open to legal action.The company that administers the legal sites can be contacted by ringing Leeds CityCouncils call centre. NOTICETOREMOVEUNLAWFULADVERTS -‘CANCELLED’ STICKERS: Cancelled stickers will form the legal notice requiring the business to remove theflyposter within 48 hours. The notice will clearly state that the flyposter has beencancelled and will obliterate the vital areas of the poster.The poster will have the 48-hour notice to remove applied as above. The notice toremove will be dated when applied. The business benefiting from the poster will alsohave a written letter sent to their business by e-mail or by first class post to confirmthis notice.The sticker will be the definitive notice as required for legal purposes. The letterwill advise that now the business has been advised of the poster, they have becomeresponsible for its removal. It seeks the co-operation of the offending business.If the local authority has to remove it, a recharge will be sent to the business torecover the removal costs and to compensate for any damage caused.After 48 hours, if the poster has not been removed, the authority will adopt a zero ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT Leeds City Council
