MORE than £8,000 in fines have been handed out and 200 bags of litter collected in the past six months during a campaign to rid Darlington of rubbish.

Darlington Borough Council launched a blitz last year to reduce the amount of litter across the town and surrounding areas.

It has received help from Litter Free Durham and other groups such as those run by councillors to tidy their own wards.

Between April and September, 124 fixed penalty notices were handed out in the town centre.

A further 127 were made in other parts of the borough.

Additionally, 74 drivers were handed the penalties for littering from their vehicles.

The council pursued 17 of those through the courts, with the largest offence being a £175 fine plus court costs.

In total, £8,832.50 of fines were raised between April and September.

A report to the council's neighbourhood services scrutiny committee also stated that 11 events to collect litter have taken place in Darlington.

A total of 43 adults and 37 children have taken part collecting 206 bags of litter since April.

The report added that the anti-litter campaign had received a high amount of publicity.

In one particular drive on a one-and-a-half mile stretch along the A167, from The White Horse Hotel to Coatham Mundeville, Street Scene officers collected 22 bags in one weekend.

In March, the council also placed a week's worth of litter in the town centre at Joseph Pease Place to demonstrate the size of the problem.

The council has also installed a talking CCTV camera system in the town centre to alert people who drop litter.

A 22-page progress addendum report will also be discussed by the scrutiny group on Tuesday.

It shows that countless shops and businesses across Darlington have been targetted.

They have been handed fines, street clearance notices or given advice on how to clear cigarette litter from around their outlets.

In the past 12 months, 455 fixed penalty notices have been made, with two people forced to conduct litter picks after failing to pay the fines.

The council spends £1.5m a year clearing up after inconsiderate members of the public.

The meeting, which is open to the public, takes place on Tuesday, at 9.30am in the town hall.