SIX tenants with untidy back yards in Blackburn and Darwen have been left £2,761 poorer thanks to the actions of borough council inspectors.

The ‘dirty’ half-dozen were prosecuted by town hall officials for failing to remove rubbish from their gardens.

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Magistrates also ordered the same six to court costs of £1,768 for their actions, according to Councillor Jim Smith, the council’s environment cabinet member.

Another three individuals were taken to court for failing to dispose of waste legally, with fines totalling £1,100, alongside £700 costs.

Two businesses were also convicted of food safety offences, bringing in fines of £1,200, coupled with £1,550 in court cost orders.

Elsewhere, 10 fixed penalty notices have been issued by the same department.

Environment bosses say that they are also keeping a watching brief for traders looking to dispose of ‘builders’ waste’ in Blackburn with Darwen, after Lancashire County Council placed restrictions at the start of June.

The borough does not enforce its own charging policy and there will be checks made on the borough’s two household waste recycling centres, in George Street West, Blackburn, and Spring Vale Road, Darwen, to see whether there is a knock-on effect.