Fly-tipping in Cannock Chase council area: incidents, enforcement and fines
482 fly-tipping incidents were recorded in Cannock Chase in 2024/25 (April 2024 to March 2025), according to the council's return to Defra: 4.6 for every 1,000 residents. That is lower than the rate across the councils in England that also count all incidents (21.1) and lower than the rate for those in the West Midlands (15.5). The council took 13 enforcement actions, including no fixed penalty notices and no prosecutions.
Table of Contents
- Fly-tipping in Cannock Chase at a glance, 2024/25
- Where fly-tipping happened in Cannock Chase
- What was fly-tipped in Cannock Chase
- How big the fly-tips were in Cannock Chase
- Fly-tipping enforcement and fines in Cannock Chase
- Fly-tipping in Cannock Chase since 2019/20
- Fly-tipping in West Midlands councils, 2024/25
- Related pages
- Questions about fly-tipping in Cannock Chase
- About these figures
Among the 267 councils in England that count all incidents, Cannock Chase had the 32nd lowest rate of fly-tipping per resident in 2024/25. Of the 27 ranked councils in the West Midlands, it had the 6th lowest rate. The count was almost unchanged on 2023/24 (483), against a rise of 9% in Defra's England total.
| Measure | Cannock Chase | West Midlands (councils counting all incidents) | England (councils counting all incidents) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fly-tipping incidents | 482 | 73,999 | 1,077,530 |
| Incidents per 1,000 residents | 4.6 | 15.5 | 21.1 |
| Share on highways | 56% | 45% | 33% |
| Tipper lorry loads or larger | 0 | 2,750 | 38,558 |
| Enforcement actions per 100 incidents | 2.7 | 40.2 | 42.1 |
| Fixed penalty notices per 100 incidents | 0.0 | 3.9 | 3.5 |
| Prosecutions | 0 | 13 | 1,089 |
The region and England columns add up the 27 councils in the West Midlands and the 269 councils in England that count all incidents.
Highways accounted for the most incidents in Cannock Chase: 268, or 56% (England 33%). Compared with England, a larger share was on council land (37.6% against 18.4%).
| Land type | Incidents | Share | England share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Highway | 268 | 55.6% | 33.4% |
| Council land | 181 | 37.6% | 18.4% |
| Footpath or bridleway | 27 | 5.6% | 20.7% |
| Back alleyway | 6 | 1.2% | 9.0% |
| Agricultural land | 0 | 0.0% | 0.3% |
| Commercial or industrial land | 0 | 0.0% | 0.3% |
| Other or not identified | 0 | 0.0% | 16.2% |
| Private or residential land | 0 | 0.0% | 1.1% |
| Railway | 0 | 0.0% | 0.2% |
| Watercourse or bank | 0 | 0.0% | 0.2% |
The most common kind of waste was other household waste, in 299 incidents (62%; England 44%). Relative to England, Cannock Chase had a larger share of white goods (24.7% against 4.7%) and other commercial waste (6.8% against 2.9%). Hazardous waste: 7 incidents involved clinical waste.
| Waste type | Incidents | Share | England share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Other household waste | 299 | 62.0% | 43.6% |
| White goods | 119 | 24.7% | 4.7% |
| Other commercial waste | 33 | 6.8% | 2.9% |
| Black bags (household) | 10 | 2.1% | 17.2% |
| Vehicle parts | 8 | 1.7% | 0.9% |
| Clinical waste | 7 | 1.5% | 0.1% |
| Animal carcasses | 6 | 1.2% | 0.3% |
41% were a car boot load or less (England 53%). 59% were van loads (England 43%). None was recorded as a tipper lorry load or larger (England 3.7%).
| Size | Incidents | Share | England share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single black bag | 13 | 2.7% | 9.2% |
| Single item | 161 | 33.4% | 16.3% |
| Car boot load or less | 23 | 4.8% | 27.3% |
| Small van load | 177 | 36.7% | 30.8% |
| Transit van load | 108 | 22.4% | 12.7% |
| Tipper lorry load | 0 | 0.0% | 2.4% |
| Significant or multiple loads | 0 | 0.0% | 1.3% |
The council took 13 enforcement actions against fly-tipping in 2024/25, 2.7 for every 100 incidents (England 42.1, the West Midlands 40.2). The most common action was duty of care inspections (8, 62% of all actions; England 6%). It issued no fixed penalty notices.
No prosecutions were recorded. Cannock Chase is not ranked on enforcement because it reported fewer than 20 actions.
| Action | Number | Per 100 incidents | England per 100 incidents |
|---|---|---|---|
| Investigations | 5 | 1.0 | 28.8 |
| Warning letters | 0 | 0.0 | 5.5 |
| Statutory notices | 0 | 0.0 | 1.7 |
| Fixed penalty notices | 0 | 0.0 | 3.5 |
| Duty of care inspections | 8 | 1.7 | 2.5 |
| Stop and search | 0 | 0.0 | 0.1 |
| Vehicles seized | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Formal cautions | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Prosecutions | 0 | 0.0 | 0.1 |
The chart shows fly-tipping incidents per 1,000 residents in Cannock Chase in each year from 2019/20 to 2024/25, with Defra's England total. The rate was below the England total's in every one of those 6 years. It starts in 2019/20, the first year for which Defra records how each council counts incidents.
| Year | Incidents | Per 1,000 residents | England per 1,000 (Defra total) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024/25 | 482 | 4.6 | 21.5 |
| 2023/24 | 483 | 4.7 | 19.9 |
| 2022/23 | 252 | 2.5 | 19.0 |
| 2021/22 | 423 | 4.2 | 19.3 |
| 2020/21 | 565 | 5.6 | 20.1 |
| 2019/20 | 406 | 4.0 | 17.4 |
Of the 27 councils in the West Midlands ranked for 2024/25, Rugby had the highest rate (36.7 per 1,000) and Stafford the lowest (3.2). Rugby's count went from 1,952 in 2023/24 to 4,488 in 2024/25 while England's changed by +9%, a step that may reflect a change in how the council records fly-tipping. Birmingham, Lichfield and Newcastle-under-Lyme are listed but not ranked: ranks cover only councils that count all incidents, with 100 or more in the year.
| Council | Incidents | Per 1,000 | Actions per 100 incidents | Rank in region |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rugby | 4,488 | 36.7 | 16.2 | 1st of 27; count 1,952 in 2023/24 |
| Sandwell | 12,542 | 35.4 | 4.3 | 2nd of 27 |
| Telford and Wrekin | 5,811 | 29.7 | 45.9 | 3rd of 27 |
| Redditch | 2,255 | 25.7 | 45.0 | 4th of 27 |
| Walsall | 6,604 | 22.3 | 9.1 | 5th of 27 |
| Stoke-on-Trent | 5,893 | 21.8 | 87.2 | 6th of 27 |
| Tamworth | 1,589 | 19.6 | 99.1 | 7th of 27 |
| Coventry | 7,188 | 19.5 | 122.6 | 8th of 27 |
| Solihull | 3,998 | 18.1 | 5.5 | 9th of 27 |
| Warwick | 2,724 | 17.6 | 18.8 | 10th of 27 |
| Bromsgrove | 1,591 | 15.6 | 20.0 | 11th of 27 |
| North Warwickshire | 1,020 | 15.2 | 5.5 | 12th of 27 |
| Nuneaton and Bedworth | 2,141 | 15.1 | 31.7 | 13th of 27 |
| Wolverhampton | 3,336 | 11.9 | 64.6 | 14th of 27 |
| East Staffordshire | 1,460 | 11.3 | 15.3 | 15th of 27 |
| South Staffordshire | 1,171 | 10.2 | 5.3 | 16th of 27 |
| Dudley | 3,303 | 10.0 | 16.3 | 17th of 27 |
| Wyre Forest | 831 | 8.0 | 21.4 | 18th of 27 |
| Wychavon | 948 | 6.9 | 0.9 | 19th of 27 |
| Shropshire | 1,734 | 5.2 | 64.6 | 20th of 27 |
| Worcester | 512 | 4.8 | 74.2 | 21st of 27 |
| Cannock Chase | 482 | 4.6 | 2.7 | 22nd of 27 |
| Staffordshire Moorlands | 397 | 4.1 | 112.3 | 23rd of 27 |
| Herefordshire | 708 | 3.7 | 137.9 | 24th of 27 |
| Malvern Hills | 298 | 3.6 | 39.6 | 25th of 27 |
| Stratford-on-Avon | 523 | 3.6 | 101.1 | 26th of 27 |
| Stafford | 452 | 3.2 | 31.6 | 27th of 27 |
| Birmingham | 24,664 | 20.8 | – | Not ranked: counts public reports only |
| Lichfield | 552 | 4.9 | – | Not ranked: counts public reports only |
| Newcastle-under-Lyme | 840 | 6.6 | – | Not ranked: counts public reports only |
- Fly-tipping in England: every council compared
- Crime statistics for Cannock Chase (police recorded crime, from data.police.uk)
How many fly-tipping incidents were there in Cannock Chase in 2024/25?
482 incidents were recorded in 2024/25, 4.6 per 1,000 residents, against 21.1 across the councils in England that count all incidents. In 2023/24 the figure was 483.
What is the fine for fly-tipping in Cannock Chase?
Cannock Chase council did not report its fixed penalty amount to Defra for 2024/25; councils set it between £150 and £1,000. In 2024/25 it issued no fixed penalty notices.
Where does fly-tipping happen in Cannock Chase?
In 2024/25 fly-tipping was most often recorded on highways (268, 56%), council land (181, 38%) and footpaths and bridleways (27, 6%).
What gets fly-tipped in Cannock Chase?
Other household waste (299), white goods (119) and other commercial waste (33) were the most common kinds of waste in 2024/25.
Is fly-tipping in Cannock Chase going up?
The count was almost unchanged: 482 in 2024/25 against 483 in 2023/24.
How do I report fly-tipping in Cannock Chase?
Report it to the council for Cannock Chase, which clears fly-tipping on public land and investigates it. Large-scale or hazardous dumping can also be reported to the Environment Agency.
Source: Defra, fly-tipping statistics for England, local authority table (published 25 February 2026), gov.uk, Open Government Licence v3.0. What is counted, and how councils differ: fly-tipping in England.