Havering’s Launders Lane Snubbed as Government Pumps Millions Into Clearing Other Waste Sites.

The Leader of Havering Council, Councillor Ray Morgon, has written to the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs Minister, Emma Reynolds, after reports revealed government funding will be used to clear some of the worst illegal waste sites in the country but not Havering.

And that is where the anger begins.

While sites in Wigan, Sheffield and Lancashire, containing a combined 48,000 tonnes of waste, are set to receive government backed clean up support, along with a 20,000 tonne site in Kidlington costing more than £9 million to clear, Havering’s Arnold’s Field has been left off the list.

A decision that is already raising serious questions.

The site at Arnold’s Field, also known as Launders Lane in Rainham, has long been a source of misery for local residents and the scale of the problem is staggering.

According to estimates from the Environment Agency, between 30,000 and 50,000 cubic metres of illegal waste was dumped at the site between 2011 and 2014 alone. When converted into tonnage, that could equate to somewhere between 30,000 and 80,000 tonnes and that is only part of the picture.

Using a cautious midpoint, Havering Council estimates around 50,000 tonnes of waste at the site.

In other words, potentially more than the combined total of the sites now being prioritised for funding.

So why has Havering been left out?

In his letter, the Council Leader did not hold back, making it clear that the borough feels overlooked despite facing a crisis on its own doorstep.

He said:

Local residents have suffered from years of fires and smoke as the illegal waste combusts in the summer months due to the heat.This is privately owned land, but due the inaction of the current landowner, we have had to look at funding solutions to solve this issue, despite being a council that is receiving a government loan for Exceptional Financial Circumstances to balance the budget.

The comparison is stark and politically charged.

Government backed figures describe the funded sites as “three of the worst illegal rubbish dumps in England”, yet Havering’s own data suggests Arnold’s Field could rival or even exceed those locations in scale.

For residents living nearby, this is not just about numbers.

It is about years of disruption, health concerns and the repeated sight of smoke rising from a site that many feel has been ignored for far too long.

And now, with other areas receiving millions in support, the question being asked is simple.

Why not Havering?

The council is now calling for an urgent meeting with Defra to address what it sees as a clear imbalance, pushing for Arnold’s Field to be recognised and funded so the clean up can finally begin.

Until then, the frustration remains and the pressure is only building.

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