Littering fines have generated nearly £100,000 in revenue for councils across a county since the start of 2023, new figures have revealed.
Local authorities in Cambridgeshire have issued 889 fixed penalty notices for littering, according to Freedom of Information requests made by the BBC.
Most of them were issued by Cambridge City Council, which received about £83,000 from littering fines – 86% of the county’s total.
Harry Machin, a volunteer litter picker in Peterborough, said other councils could learn from Cambridge.
More from Cambridgeshire:
Cambridge City Council has consistently issued more fines than other authorities in Cambridgeshire, but the number of them has been falling.
The council issued 776 of the county’s 889 fines – 374 in 2023, 271 in 2024, 82 in 2025, and 49 so far this year.
By contrast, Peterborough City Council has issued 45 fines since 2023.
The BBC asked the councils about fines for littering but not fly-tipping, which the authority previously said had more than doubled last year.
South Cambridgeshire, East Cambridgeshire, Huntingdonshire, and Fenland councils have handed out 33, 22, seven, and six littering fines respectively.
The fines have generated the following revenue for each council:
-
Cambridge City Council: £83,460
-
South Cambridgeshire District Council: £6,720
-
East Cambridgeshire District Council: £3,601
-
Peterborough City Council: £1,200
-
Fenland District Council: £1,000
-
Huntingdonshire District Council: £900
