A FLY tipping victim had to wait months for a large pile of rubbish to be removed from her land after the council initially refused to help.

Lyn Hawksby was horrified when she discovered a huge mound of plastic and wood had been dumped outside her horse stables near Sedgefield in County Durham last October.

She immediately phoned Durham County Council but was told that the authority does not collect fly tipping from private land.

And when she tried to dispose of some of the waste at Coxhoe Household Waste Recycling Centre she received an equally frustrating response.

“I only had a small amount of wood and plastic with me but when I got to the tip I was bluntly told that I couldn’t leave it there,” said Ms Hawksby, 49.

“Thankfully, the supervisor took pity on me and let me leave it but he said I couldn’t bring any more. What was I supposed to do?”

The rubbish was finally removed this afternoon after The Northern Echo contacted the council.

Oliver Sherratt, head of direct services at Durham County Council, confirmed the authority does not collect fly tipping from private land but had made an exception on this occasion.

He said he was surprised Ms Hawksby had been turned away from the household waste recycling centre and said the council would look into this incident.

“The council, working with partners, does take fly-tipping seriously and we will take further action against the minority who spoil our environment, where evidence can be found," he added.