A ROOFING company has been forced to pay £630 after its employees dumped a pile of bricks and wood next to a field.

Two men were seen unloading the rubbish from a white van at the entrance to a field in Lockinge, near Wantage.

Vale of White Horse District Council has now prosecuted the company they worked for, Oxford-based Principle Homes Development Limited, for one charge of fly-tipping and one charge of not having a waste carrier licence.

A director pleaded guilty on behalf of the Headington company at Oxford Magistrates’ Court on February 4.

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The company had been warned five months earlier that they needed a waste carrier licence to operate, but it had failed to secure one.

Magistrates fined the company £250, a victim surcharge of £30 and £350 towards prosecution costs.

The employees were caught dumping rubbish at the entrance to a field in Grove Park Drive, at about 7.15pm on August 20 last year.

A man who had been driving nearby noticed the van and when the employees saw him, they immediately drove off.

The witness managed to record the registration number of the van, which was then traced back to Principle Homes. 

Both men admitted to their boss that they had been caught fly-tipping, after collecting waste from a customer’s house in Grove.

The company's representative, who was not named by the council, said the men have since been sacked and another employee returned to the location to remove and dispose the waste properly.

He added that he had no details of the two labourers that he had employed as they had been taken on via an online recruitment site.

The company has since gained a waste carrier licence. 

ALSO READ: Didcot man with a van charged £500 then dumped waste in a field

Councillor Elaine Ware, the council's cabinet member for housing and environment, said: "We take cases of fly-tipping extremely seriously and will always prosecute offenders where possible."

Principle Home Developments Ltd is based in Warren Crescent and, according to its profile on Yell.com, specialises in roofing, scaffolding and driveways.

The web page adds: "Principle Home Developments is Oxfordshire's fastest growing roofing company and it's no secret as to why.

"We pride ourselves on our commitment to provide a professional and speedy service at all times, whilst maintaining the highest quality of work."

Of 30 reviews left on the site, every single one boasts the maximum rating of five stars.