A concerned member of the public who spotted a fly-tipping offence in progress has been thanked by Stroud District Council after a successful prosecution.

When she saw three sofa cushions being dumped from a van near Painswick, she called Stroud District Council, which took the van's owner to court.

Daniel Welsh from Lobleys Drive, Brockworth pleaded guilty to fly-tipping from his vehicle at Holcombe Lane, Painswick on 1st August last year.

Cheltenham magistrates ordered him to pay a £300 fine, the council's clear-up costs of £115, and a victim surcharge of £30.

In court, the defendant confirmed it was his vehicle and took responsibility for the actions of the driver. The defendant told the court that a member of his family borrowed the van at the time of the offence and that the van has since been sent to scrap.

Mike Hammond, Stroud District Council head of community services, said: "We are very grateful to the member of the public who alerted us to this offence, and gave us the evidence we needed to secure a prosecution.

"We clear more than 900 fly-tips a year and we will prosecute where the evidence is strong enough to be brought before a court."

It seems that fly-tipping is a growing problem across the county. Only yesterday, we reported on the successful prosecution of a fly-tipper in Newent .