Father faces £50k 'fly-tipping' fine after planting allotment on disused playground

Council bosses have threatened a father with a £50,000 fine after he turned a derelict playground into a shared allotment.

Simon Martin, 43, says he transformed the disused play area in Cadoxton, Barry, Wales, into a space for him and his neighbours to use after the park – which closed 15 years ago – was overgrown by weeds.

He had brought in top soil to help the plants grow, but workers from Vale of Glamorgan Council have told him he faces a large fine for fly-tipping unless he removes a large pile of waste from the site.

Martin said: "I am trying to do a bit of good. I am the reverse of fly-tipping – I'm making it better."

The fly-tipping accusation related to the movement of earth on to the patch of land behind his house for use as topsoil.

Enforcement officers visited him at home and ordered him to move the soil off the site but Martin says there is "no way" he can move it on his own.

He admits putting some of his own soil along with a number of other neighbours in the locality, but insisted it was not fly-tipping "because it is soil that has been moved no more than 10 metres from the same area".

He added: "This is soil that can be used to grass an area, to plant a tree, to re-wild an area. I don’t want to go to jail and I can’t afford a £50,000 fine, but I’m not giving in to them."

Martin insists that his actions are not intended as a land grab, saying he only wants the community to be able to make use of this patch of land in a positive way.

It has a range of plants growing there, including pear trees, apple trees, blackcurrant bushes, rosemary and lavender.

A Vale of Glamorgan Council spokesperson said they visited Martin's property after a resident complained about the "large amount of garden waste that had been deposited in the former playground" – but no enforcement action has yet been taken.

They added: "While the intention may have been to create allotments, in reality stone-borders have been placed along the rubberised surface of the playground and soil and turf deposited on top.

"There is a large pile of garden waste and the rear wall of Mr Martin’s property also appears to have been knocked down to allow access."

The spokesperson said the site of the allotment was "wholly inappropriate for this use", adding that "no permission or guidance was sought prior to a very significant amount of what could be considered controlled waste was deposited on the surface of the playground".

The council say Martin must remove the water from the site and return it to its previous condition before they "determine whether to consider a criminal prosecution".

Some locals have said they support Martin, with one 87-year-old neighbour saying: “It is wonderful to watch it all taking shape again. It brings back so many glorious memories.

“He has my full support."

Another resident said: “Simon should be applauded for what he’s achieved out here, not threatened with jail."

Martin added: "It is not perfect conditions, but if they were to put some top soil on it, they would then be able to plant [and] take it back to what it was 140 years ago when the houses were built. It was land for people to grow vegetables on."