A behavioural science approach to reducing fly-tipping

As a local authority, tackling fly-tipping often feels like a lose-lose situation.

• If you leave dumped waste in place, the “broken window” effect kicks in—people see rubbish and add more to it.
• If you remove it quickly, residents assume bulky waste collection is free and stop using official disposal services.
• Rapid removals can also hinder enforcement, limiting your ability to gather evidence for prosecutions.

So, how can you break free from this cycle and reduce fly-tipping incidents while increasing successful prosecutions?

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The Fly-tipping Solutions Guide

In 2023–24, the RECAP Waste Partnership commissioned research and a practical solutions guide to help enforcement officers tackle household waste fly-tipping.

The focus? Black bags, bulky waste, and Duty of Care issues (excluding professional fly-tippers).

The guide provides tested solutions across:

✅ Enforcement strategies

✅ Street infrastructure

✅ Communications & engagement

✅ Services & community events

Each solution is categorised from "quick and cheap" to "proceed with caution," with behavioural science insights explaining why they work.

The guide also includes campaign frameworks to help you develop targeted interventions.

The executive summary is available to download which includes:

• The reasons why people fly-tip
• The barriers to legitimate disposal
• A quick-reference chart of effective initiatives

Download the Fly-Tipping Solutions Summary

https://landing.mailerlite.com/webforms/landing/d3w9d1

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Engaging your team to take new approaches

Do you know what needs to change but face barriers to action?

Are you stuck repeating the same interventions with limited impact?

Would you like your enforcement officers, comms teams, and elected members to explore new, evidence-based strategies?

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The Fly-tipping Solutions Package

A comprehensive training and strategy package designed to equip local authorities with new approaches to reducing fly-tipping.

This interactive, behavioural science-based program helps enforcement teams, comms teams, and local councillors work together to drive lasting change.

What’s included in the package:

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1. Fly-Tipping Solutions Guide

   The full 60-page guide includes practical advice, research and case studies for your team to consider and adopt for enforcement, street scene infrastructure, online, on-street and direct communications plus services and events.

   You will have:

   • Access to the print and digital copies
   • Design changes for your local authority customisation including:
     • Your logos and weblinks on the front page
     • Your own Local Authority Foreword
     • Local Officer examples

   (printing costs are not included in the package)

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1. Interactive Session: Developing a Fly-Tipping Solutions Session

   2-hour facilitated workshop delivered by The Sustainable Sidekicks. In the session Break-out groups focus on different fly-tipping behaviours working to :

   • Explore the underlying causes for different resident groups
   • Identify which solutions from the guide are relevant to their challenge
   • Develop new approaches and communications
   • Explore how to collaborate across your region.

The interactive session will be customised for your area and challenges, incorporating local examples to provide a regional focus. Teams will receive feedback on their specific challenge areas during the session.

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1. Optional feedback and support for your initiatives

   Recommendations and advice on your campaign ideas and plans

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Get in Contact

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Is this for you?

This package is ideally suited for local authorities who are:

• Launching a focused campaign to tackle fly-tipping in their area
• Looking to upskill their enforcement team
• Wanting to shift attitudes around quick waste removal

To enquire about the package for your team, get in contact

What you’ll gain:

✔️ Quick actions to implement immediately

✔️ Strategies for a holistic, long-term approach

✔️ Insights from what works (and what doesn’t) in other councils

✔️ Ways to improve Duty of Care awareness and responsibility by residents

✔️ Ways to encourage reuse and repair

✔️ Practical solutions to increase fine payments

✔️ Communication tips for HWRC & bulky waste services

Background

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"We commissioned this guide to understand why people fly-tip and which interventions effectively change their behaviour. The guide presents new ideas and methods, showing what works—and what doesn't—in this field. We want other local authorities to benefit from our work and insights to reduce fly-tipping more effectively. We believe this is best achieved through interactive sessions where teams dedicate time to explore solutions differently from their usual approach."

Bryony Rothwell, Waste Partnership Manager - RECAP

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Through desk-based research, qualitative interviews and quantitative research the team helps local authorities uncover the barriers to change for their residents and the changes and communication messages to adopt.

We also train teams in applying behavioural science to tackle environmental challenges, ensuring sustainability efforts are practical, scalable, and long-lasting.

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