THE frustrated owner of an upmarket wedding venue hotel has spoken of the growing legacy of rubbish left by rogue fly-tippers.

Anthony Baker, owner of the luxury Saddleworth Hotel, on a stunning hillside setting outside Delph, said: "Fly-tipping has been getting worse by the month.”

The 85-year-old hotelier bought the premises on the main A62 Oldham to Huddersfield road in 1964 and its countryside setting is hugely popular with wedding couples planning their big day.

But at the weekend Anthony and his team discovered more than a ton of builders materials included laminating flooring piled up on a lane leading to the rear entrance of the distinguished building.

He said: “We are planning on installing CCTV in a bid to catch the culprits. Oldham Council remove this bulk rubbish and my team carry out weekly checks along the roadside near the main highway and discover all kinds of waste discarded from the windows of passing cars.

“It’s very disheartening but the situation seems to have got worse since lockdown. We can fill several bags of rubbish in just one roadside tidy up.

“We find all sorts of waste strewn across the area. And there has been a bid to remove gates and a stone pillar from one of the rear entrances too.”

He added: “We have even found debris from cast off cannabis plants at the roadside and our team are constantly picking up a wide collecting of rubbish.”

Fly-tipping is the illegal dumping of waste that might include general household rubbish, larger household items, for example mattresses and fridges, garden refuse or commercial waste.

When a case of fly-tipping is reported, first, an enforcement officer will investigate. Once the investigation is completed the council clears the fly-tipping as soon as possible.

The council says the complainant will receive email updates about the progress of their report if they provide the authority with their email address when completing the report form.

Oldham Council treats fly-tipping very seriously and will prosecute anyone caught fly-tipping.