Husband and wife fined for overgrown gardens
A Telford husband and wife have been fined by magistrates a total of £1,250 plus costs for having overgrown and untidy gardens at a property they own in Wellington.
It is the second time in the last three years that a prosecution has been brought against Glenville Charles Davies and Marion Kathleen Davies, for the same offence.
Telford & Wrekin Council’s planning team brought the prosecution under the Town & Country Planning Act 1990 due to the impact that the property was having on the local area.
Mr Davies was present on Monday at Shropshire Magistrates Court sitting in Telford and pleaded guilty. He was fined £500, ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £50 and council costs of £255..
Mrs Davies was found guilty in her absence and fined £750, ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £75 and council costs of £255.
The court heard that a previous enforcement notice had been served on the couple in 2015 which they failed to comply with resulting in them being prosecuted. On that occasion, Telford & Wrekin Council also took direct action by clearing the gardens.
This time an enforcement notice was served on 20 March 2018 and required Mr and Mrs Davies to cut back all vegetation and clear the front and rear gardens of their property by 20 June. This was not complied with so prosecution proceedings were started.
Councillor Richard Overton, Telford & Wrekin Council’s cabinet member for Enforcement, said: “We often receive complaints regarding overgrown, unkempt and untidy gardens.
“The garden or land can become unsightly or attract other environmental crimes, such as fly-tipping, and impact on the appearance of a neighbourhood and cause a nuisance to other residents.
“We only resort to prosecutons in extreme cases including when there is a wilful resistance to enforcement orders.”
