A woman has been hit with a bill of more than £1,000 after being prosecuted for leaving rubbish strewn across her street.

Shirley Hilden was taken to court after a spat with Ashford Borough Council resulted in waste piling up on the side of the road.

Folkestone Magistrates' Court heard that council officers took issue with Ms Hilden – of Bulleid Place, Newtown – after she repeatedly contaminated her household bins with the incorrect waste.

This continued despite council officers giving advice on how to manage her recycling on a number of occasions, magistrates were told.

As a result, the council’s refuse services operator Biffa was unable to collect refuse from the address, resulting in the 33-year-old leaving her bins on the road, with rubbish building up and eventually spilling out onto the pavement.

This led to numerous complaints from neighbours and raised environmental health concerns.

Ms Hilden was issued with Community Protection Warning (CPW) and given instructions on managing her household waste, which she ignored.

This then escalated to the issuing of a Community Protection Notice, which she ignored and this led to a Fixed Penalty Notice being served. After she failed to pay the £100 fine, the council took her to court.

After Ms Hilden failed to appear at court on Monday, the case was heard in her absence and she was found guilty of failing to comply with a community protection order.

She was ordered to pay a £250 fine, a £34 victim surcharge and £981.60 in costs. This total of £1,265,60 is to be paid to the court within 28 days.

A spokesman for Ashford Borough Council said: “It is the responsibility of every householder to sort their household waste correctly and ensure that their household refuse bins are properly prepared for collection.

"Failures in this can lead to providers refusing to collect waste and a build-up of excess waste at a property.

“This may in turn lead to severe environmental issues and a detrimental effect on the local community.

"In these circumstances, where appropriate advice and warnings have been issued, Ashford Borough Council is forced to take legal action.”