Barking and Dagenham council’s ground-breaking Wall of Shame web series has reached its 50th episode.

The pioneering series, which premiered in August 2018, aims to identify and fine fly-tippers caught on camera with the help of eagle-eyed viewers.

The show releases a new episode every fortnight (it has taken breaks for Christmas and for the lockdown earlier this year) and features narration that is both informative and entertaining.

Over 40 fly-tippers have so far been identified and fined following tip-offs from members of the public having seen the show.

The Wall of Shame won the coveted ‘Best Use of Video’ award at last year’s Comms2Point0 Unawards ceremony, in Birmingham. It attracts an average of over 5,000 viewers per episode.

Cllr Margaret Mullane, Cabinet Member for Enforcement and Community Safety, said of the show reaching the milestone: “The response by the people of Barking and Dagenham to the Wall of Shame has been great.

“On the issue of fly-tipping, the council and residents are in clear agreement – there is no place for it in Barking and Dagenham, and this has been shown by viewers getting in touch and identifying the fly-tippers featured.

“The Wall of Shame is one of the many ways we are trying to stamp out fly-tipping in the borough for good.”

The Wall of Shame has had a great impact on the community of Barking and Dagenham, so much so that the relative of a fly-tipper spotted on the show wrote to the council claiming they had left the borough following the humiliation. In a postcard addressed to the ‘Tosser, or tossers’ responsible for the Wall of Shame, they wrote:

“You humiliated a member of my family on your Wall of Shame and in response I moved my family out of the borough… I have always said good things about Dagenham but in future all I will talk about is your Wall of Shame.”

This prompted the Leader of Barking and Dagenham Council, Cllr Darren Rodwell, to respond, saying in a Facebook post: “Thanks for the free publicity, and I hope you’ll be treating your new borough with the respect it deserves.”

Over 500 incidents of fly-tipping caught on camera have now been released via the Wall of Shame. The current fine for fly-tipping in Barking and Dagenham is £400 and for littering it is £150.

Watch the 50th episode of the Wall of Shame by clicking this link.