Littering the streets of Wandsworth will now prove a little more costly, as Wandsworth Council is set to increase the maximum fine.

Currently people caught littering would be fined up to £100. However, to act as a deterrent to offenders this fine has gone up to £150. The move will come into effect tomorrow (November 1) and is part of the councils zero tolerance approach to littering.

Increasing the maximum fine sends a clear message that dropping any litter, whether it’s a crisp packet, cigarette butt or sweet wrapper is unacceptable. Those caught are able to pay a reduced fee if paid within 10 days of issue.

This new enforcement measure forms part of #KeepWandsworthClean education campaign, and follows a successful 18-month pilot which saw council contractor NSL work alongside an in-house team, issuing more than 4,000 fines during the course of the trial. This brings the total number of fines issued, between April 2017 and August 2018, up to 6,286.

Council officers will continue to support this work with #KeepWandsworthClean education campaign, working with schools, landlords and businesses; highlighting how residents can dispose of rubbish responsibly and encourages people to change their behaviour.

Cllr Steffi Sutters, Wandsworth Council's environment spokesperson, said: “We work hard to keep the borough clean and tidy, but all too often council taxpayers foot the bill to pick up other people’s rubbish.“Litter louts shouldn’t be allowed to get away with this behaviour. Increasing on the spot fines to £150 make them think twice about their actions.

“More serious fly-tipping offences will continue to be dealt with by prosecution, as will anyone who fails to pay a fixed penalty.”

One resident commented on the news said: "Great to see. And more visibility of enforcement will help too - the more litter louts are seen to be fined, the more people will get the message that it’s socially unacceptable. I do think that more or bigger bins on the high streets might help, purely because often they seem to be overflowing, which at least shows they are being used.

"I also would like to see local fast food businesses playing their part to prompt their customers to behave responsibly - much of the litter I see is from local chicken shops, McDonalds etc. And it’s in their interests to do so - it reflects poorly on their brand when it’s seen as litter."