“We welcome this outcome and will continue to work tirelessly to pursue and prosecute those involved in illegal waste activities,” an Environment Agency spokesperson said after a Dinnington case concluded in Sheffield.

On 17 December 2025 at Sheffield Magistrates’ Court, Gary Saunders, of Spitalfields, Blyth, Worksop, Nottinghamshire, received a 17‑week prison sentence suspended for 12 months. He was ordered to complete 60 hours of unpaid work, pay £3,000 in costs and a £154 victim surcharge for offences linked to a site near Sheffield.

The case began when a member of the public contacted the Environment Agency. Officers visited the Church Lane yard in Dinnington on 20 June 2023 and discovered large amounts of illegal waste at premises trading as 4 Counties Group.

Investigators established Saunders was running a conservatory business from the site as a sole trader. He leased the yard from landowner Andrew Fisher while operating from the address on Church Lane.

Despite repeated site visits and written guidance from the Environment Agency, waste continued to accumulate. Officers monitored the location over many months, warning Saunders to remove material and bring the operation into compliance.

In interview, Saunders cited health challenges and admitted working without the proper permits. He failed to meet deadlines to clear the waste, and by February 2025 eviction proceedings were underway, with the landlord taking back control of the site.

Saunders pleaded guilty to operating a regulated facility at 2a Church Lane, Dinnington between 14 July 2023 and 25 February 2025 without an environmental permit. The unlawful operation involved the storage, treatment and disposal of UPVC doors and frames, glass, plastic sheets, guttering, fascias and soffits, contrary to Regulations 12(1), 38(1)(a) and 39(1) of the Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016.

The Environment Agency stressed that illegal waste activity harms the environment and undercuts businesses playing by the rules. Anyone with information about waste crime can call the Agency’s incident hotline on 0800 807060 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.