A crackdown on "mindless litterbugs", graffiti taggers and fly-posting has led to almost 600 offenders being slapped with fines in the last three months.

The city council purge follows the recruitment of an extra 11 enforcement officers who have been targetting and tracking down those responsible for blighting the district.
During the same time, four flytippers have been fined and another three cases are due to come to court.

In one incident, an offenders were covertly filmed dumping rubbish in lanes which led to their lorry being confiscated and crushed.

The tough approach to the social menace coincides with the launch this week of a year-long anti-litter campaign called Love Where We Live, designed to raise awareness and encourage responsible behaviour.

It aims to create a greater sense of pride in the district, encouraging people not to drop litter or flytip, to clean up after their dogs and refrain from disfiguring buildings with ugly graffiti.

Chairman of the council’s community committee Cllr Neil Baker said: "We want to prick the conscience of the mindless litterbug, the lazy dog owner, the vandal armed with a marker pen or the greedy flytipper out to make a quick buck.

"The Love Where We Live campaign is also the perfect place to thank those volunteers who give up their valuable time week in and week out to pick up the litter left by others."

As well as taking on an army of new enforcement officers in the last year, the council now has a dedicated officer in a van who cleans up flytipping and hunts down offenders.

Other measures taken by the authority include launching a new website and printed guides for residents to more easily report fly-tipping, burnt-out cars, graffiti and abandoned shopping trolleys.

Housing landlords have been written to, reminding them of their responsibility to help their tenants dispose of their waste properly and a student recycling scheme will be launched.