Exclusive:FIVE HUNDRED littering fines issued in first month of Sheffield's new enforcement patrols
“Ultimately if you don’t care about the state of our streets, if you’re using them as your personal bin, then on behalf of Sheffield residents we have got to do something about that”
As part of a raft of measures designed to improve Sheffield’s streets, new littering enforcement patrols have been hard at work.
Beginning in August, the Waste Investigations Support and Enforcement Ltd (WISE) now run what they described a ‘dedicated proactive enforcement service’ across the city - handing out close to 500 on-the-spot fines for dog fouling and those caught dropping rubbish in just one month.
The city’s Labour contingent say the service has been a resounding success, with only two people fined for littering in the first half of 2026, compared to 481 in August alone.
Councillor Mark Rusling, who is chair of the Environmental Services and Regulation Committee, hopes that these will make everyone across the city to feel like there communities are meeting the same standards.
“Can you feel as positive about your community if you live in Firth Park as if you live in Fulwood? You should be able to,” he said.
Action against fly-tipping has similarly been on the rise, with 1,171 waste enforcement actions in the first quarter of 2026/7, a rise from 463 in the same time last year – a 253 per cent increase.
Coun Rusling, who represents the Shiregreen and Brightside ward, says that this doesn’t come down to “wanting to fine people,” but adds: “Ultimately if you don’t care about the state of our streets, if you’re using them as your personal bin, then on behalf of Sheffield residents we have got to do something about that.”
In June, the council passed a motion titled the ‘Sheffield Neighbourhood Guarantee’, setting standards that ensure all the city’s regions are being fairly served.
Coun Rusling admits that a failure to address these day-to-day problems have left communities feeling hopeless, adding; “If you step out of your front door and there are potholes and there's litter and there's fly-tipping you can't feel that sense of community.”
Moving forward the council will continue to work with residents and businesses to address problems that may result in fly-tipping or littering, while being more reactive when people fail to follow the rules.
“My personal view is that there has been an enormous amount of outreach to different communities in different languages, face-to-face, extra things put in some communities,” Coun Rusling added.
“For some people that's absolutely worked and they understand what's expected no problem.
“For a small minority it hasn't worked and actually we need to look to do something different here - and part of that is going down the fixed penalty route.
“If you just don't care and you just don't care what these streets look like, then I'm afraid we are going to have a problem with that.
“Unfortunately in the past we haven't had a problem with it - but now we do.”