Litter and its impact on our parks

The importance of access to greenspace and parks have been and continue to be more important than ever. We work hard to keep the parks safe and protect the beautiful greenspaces of Milton Keynes so that everyone can enjoy them safely and reap the benefits to their physical and mental wellbeing.  

If the bin is full, please take your litter home! 

Our parkland is the perfect place to meet friends and family and picnics are often popular pass times but we must stress the need to take home the litter you bring into our parks. We do have some strategically placed bins located around our parks, and our team work hard to make sure these are frequently emptied but if the bin is full please don’t leave your bag next to the bin, take it home.

Why you shouldn't leave rubbish next to the bin?

Leaving rubbish next to or trying to force rubbish into an already overflowing bin seriously effects wildlife. Discarded rubbish blows around our parks and gets into the path of wildlife causing a whole host of issues. Small mammals, like shrews, often climb inside discarded bottles where they become trapped and die, hedgehogs (a declining species in the UK) are often victims of litter. They become caught up in items like plastic multi-pack rings and plastic carrier bags, often with fatal results. It is not just land mammals that are suffering, waterfowl such as swans and geese can swallow plastic which accumulates in their stomach and eventually kills them. So please act responsibly and take your litter home.

What is the cost of littering to The Parks Trust? 

The cost of removing litter from our parks is enormous, it already costs us over £400,000 a year, so adding more bins is simply not the answer. Research conducted by Keep Britain Tidy indicates that 62% of people do not litter. These people would normally take their litter home with them, but upon seeing bins, will use them. So, installing more bins into our parks is not affordable for the charity and clearing the excess litter, is reducing funds that could otherwise be spent on maintaining and improving the parks for the benefit of all.

Do you know, you could be fined for littering? 

We would like to remind park users that are dropping litter or acting inappropriately in the parks that we do have mobile CCTV in operation. Ten investigations were carried out last in May 2020 alone, with the appropriate fixed penalties handed out. The penalties are set at £80 (for littering and dog fouling) and £400 for dumping rubbish. This is not a money-making exercise as the fines go to the Local Authority Enforcement Team, who once receiving the evidence undertake investigation, which in turn has a cost.

The Parks Trust are a self-financed charity! 

There are still many people that are not aware that The Parks Trust is a self-financing charity and does not receive any funding from local or central government. The cost of clearing up litter falls directly to us and doesn’t hit tax payers.  As a charity we want to educate people about acting responsibly regarding the environment, we also want to make sure that our future is secure so that we can continue to manage and maintain these amazing green spaces.

Please help support us by taking your litter home, regardless of whether there is a bin in place or not.

• A branch overhangs my boundary. What can I do?

  Overhanging material is usually dealt with as part of our thinning and coppicing programme. Unfortunately, it is not practical for us to respond immediately unless the overhanging branches are causing, or are likely to cause, actual damage to your property. If you prefer not to wait, you can cut the branch at the point at which it enters your property. The only exception to this are trees which are protected (see below). Hedges which run alongside garden boundaries are usually routinely cut once a year on the Trust side.

  All Parks Trust tree-felling operations are subject to an overall plan which has been approved by the Forestry Commission.

• How do I know whether the trees adjacent to my boundary are legally protected?

  A small number of older trees in Milton Keynes are protected by a Tree Preservation Order (TPO) or blanket TPO areas (covering whole areas). Others are protected because they are situated within a conservation area. The Park’s Trust’s landscape staff can usually advise you whether the trees bordering your property are protected. But it is the local authority, Milton Keynes Council, which is responsible for administering TPOs and conservation areas within the city. If in doubt contact the Council before undertaking tree work. The Council's on Arboricultural Officer, Bob Widd, can be contacted on 01908 691691.

• Why have you let the trees grow high enough to block the light to my garden and make it shady?

  The Parks Trust believes it is important to be a good and responsible neighbour. When we are thinning plantations along garden boundaries we generally write to our neighbours in advance of any works. Where possible we favour smaller growing trees and shrubs in order to minimise the effect of tree shade on gardens. It is inevitable that with so many tree-covered areas bordering gardens, some gardens will at some time be in the shade. Some neighbours will like the seclusion the trees offer, others will not. We have to take a balanced view and consider factors such as the landscape, its general design, how it is now, the future and its neighbours, while not forgetting wildlife habitat influences.

• Why do you cut trees down?

  There are a number of reasons why you may see our team or contractors removing trees. Check out our tree thinning section to find out more.

• Why do you cut back shrubs?

  Cutting back (coppicing) some shrubs in the dormant season is an important and traditional technique that actually promotes the plants’ health and allows rich, vibrant regrowth that brings colour to the landscape. Find out more about our coppicing work.

• What can I do about your thinning and coppicing programme which has reduced the screening around my property and taken away my privacy?

  Ultimately the landscape can never be a guaranteed screen as it is a living dynamic thing that changes over time. Trees and shrubs are constantly growing and changing and need proper management. Thinning and rotational coppicing does involve opening up areas from time to time, but as light levels increase and nutrients become more available, tree and shrub re-growth increases dramatically to fill the space. We tend to coppice shrubs in the dormant season between Christmas and the end of March and it is not unusual to see the re-growth reaching a height of 1 metre by the end of August. 

• What about increased noise levels I experience since you thinned the trees and shrubs nearby?

  Noise issues usually arise where homes are adjacent to the parkways or grid roads. While trees and shrubs may have a limited effect on noise levels it is actually the width and mounding of roadside reservations that has the most impact on noise reduction in residential areas. All noise attenuation planning considerations in Milton Keynes were calculated ignoring any potential effect of vegetation.

• Can you do anything about the leaves falling into my garden in the autumn and causing a nuisance?

  We appreciate that while dead leaves are not a nuisance in the legal sense of causing ‘substantial harm’ they can be irritating. Unfortunately, it is simply not practical for The Parks Trust to remove leaf litter from individual gardens. We do have a programme of tree works on the boundary throughout the city but with the grid roads alone being 180 kilometres long this is not a quick job. Whilst not aimed at dealing with leaf nuisance in private gardens, this work will help reduce the aggravation this issue causes.

• Will tree roots which are crossing my property boundary damage my foundations?

  Like tree branches, roots do not respect boundaries. Removal of larger trees and vigorous shrubs adjacent to property boundaries helps to reduce the problem. Occasionally on clay soils tree roots may cause shrinkage beneath a building foundation causing differential settlement particularly where foundations are shallow or inadequate. Most modern Milton Keynes homes are built with foundations which took account of local planting (often in place before the buildings) and are deep enough to avoid the effects of clay shrinkage from trees growing on Parks Trust land. There are many other causes of subsidence other than tree roots extracting moisture. Property owners do have a legal right to remove any tree roots that enter into their land. If you choose this course of action we would like to be informed, as it may have a bearing on how we manage those individual trees.

  If you are concerned that roots from The Parks Trust’s trees have damaged your property please inform us as soon as possible. You should also consult your property insurers or seek other professional advice.

• Why didn’t the Parks Trust consult me before undertaking work near my property?

  We believe it is important to consult and inform our neighbours about significant or sensitive works near their boundary but it is not always straightforward. For example, the Trust carries out over 2,000 separate tree and shrub works in the city each year and resources mean that it simply is not possible to inform all our neighbours about such routine thinning and coppicing operations. However, we do try and identify largescale works or those that might be sensitive to local residents. We then write to residents informing them of the work taking place, explaining why it is happening and giving them an opportunity to query the work or take action such as upgrading their fencing.

  We are always happy to deal with your queries, and explain about upcoming works, some of which are posted on this website.

• Why are all the Horse Chestnut trees dying?

  Horse chestnut trees in the UK have been under increasing attack from several diseases, namely bleeding canker, Leaf Miner moth and leaf blotch. 

• How does the Trust deal with these diseases?

  One of the messages linked to the effects of climate change is that it will lead to trees in the British Isles being more open to pests and diseases which have traditionally been associated with warmer climates. One tactic we use is to not rely on mono-cultures or single species of tree, but use a diversity of species. When carrying out thinning works we look to retain various types of trees rather than one type. Sudden and acute diseases of Oak is perhaps a reason we should not be over reliant on Oak as we do not know what affect those diseases will have in the future.

  When carrying out new planting works we tend to use trees with a good record against pest or pathogen attack such as the Wild Service Tree (Sorbus Torminalis). We have no intention of removing Horse Chestnut from the Milton Keynes landscape but will perhaps not be so reliant on them as we have been in the past.

• Can I take dead wood from the parks, grid roads or woodlands?

  Dead wood provides an important habitat for insect life, which in turn helps support the rich variety of birds and butterflies you see in the parks. So we’d prefer you to leave dead wood where it is.

  We do harvest and sell logs from some of the trees that are felled during thinning operations. These log piles are the private property of the Parks Trust. The logs are cut or chipped for use elsewhere in the parks or gathered together to be sold in quantities of approximately 5 tonnes which are then delivered to paying customers. Find out about firewood sales.