Throughout the coronavirus pandemic, Barking and Dagenham Council’s enforcement team has worked alongside businesses to ensure they’re following the regulations and provided advice where needed.



From Monday 12 April, non-essential shops, hairdressers, beauty salons can reopen alongside hospitality venues, such as restaurants, cafes and pubs for outside table service and the joint work between the council and business owners will continue.

Residents are being asked to share their views on how best to use a brand-new community space coming soon to Sebastian Court. Those also interested in applying for the lease are encouraged to get in touch.

In addition to the 95 new, affordable homes planned for the Sebastian Court site, the area will also welcome new playgrounds and public spaces for local people to benefit from.

Applications to apply for the lease are welcome, with the following days open for covid-safe site visits:

As the days get longer and the warmer weather begins you may find unexpected and unwanted visitors knock at your door with glossy brochures and generous price reductions for home improvement work.

Debt can often be associated with embarrassment, so that’s why Barking and Dagenham Council is launching a new debt collections service that aims to work with residents to reduce the likelihood of needing to enforce.

Good news for Barking and Dagenham residents: they can now recycle more items, making it easier to get green at home.

Previously, residents could recycle the following items in their brown bin: 

•    paper and thin card

•    plastic bottles, cans and tins, and thick cardboard

Residents can now also recycle the following items in their brown bin: 

Barking and Dagenham Council continue to work with businesses to ensure that they’re following the coronavirus rules and last week, they visited nearly 4000 businesses.



During the round of visits, officers found that 1,875 businesses were non-compliant including two car washes who were issued with Fixed Penalty Notices for being open, when they should have been closed.



Both car washes had previously been issued with notices to close but remained open and have ultimately been fined.

Barking and Dagenham Council enforcement officers have closed down a Barking supermarket for failing to comply with Covid regulations despite numerous warnings.



Magazin Traditional Romanesc of 49 East Street, Barking has been told to close for trading for two weeks as on 15 occasions it was found to be breaking Covid rules.

As part of its plans to improve air quality in Barking and Dagenham, the east London council is encouraging drivers to turn their engines off while their car is stationary.



Called Idling, it means leaving vehicle engines on while sitting outside of a shop, at a friend’s house or just sitting in back-to-back traffic or at traffic lights, as this massively affects air pollution and ultimately people’s health.

In the last few weeks, three school-aged children from Barking and Dagenham have been the victim of a stabbing and once again the east London council, along with local secondary schools, is asking parents to take more responsibility for their children by knowing what they’re up to, when not at home.

In the second phase of its Lost Hours campaign, Barking and Dagenham Council has teamed up with local secondary schools to spread the message to parents through social media and school newsletters. 

Following consultation with residents, Barking and Dagenham Council has renewed two Public Space Protection Orders (PSPOs) to help curb anti-social behaviour on two of its high streets.



The consultation process to renew the PSPOs in Barking Town Centre and Broad Street Dagenham started in February and included an online survey for each location. The council also held a virtual Q&A with residents, hosted by Cllr Margaret Mullane, and residents had the opportunity to ask questions around the proposals for the PSPOs.