Bin bags of rubbish spotted in Westgate Street in Ipswich

The piles of bin bags were spotted outside of Westgate Street's La Avram Grill on Monday with labels wrapping the bags saying "illegally dumped rubbish - under investigation".

It is not known who left the bags there, or when.

Ipswich Borough Council is aware of the problem with councillor John Cook, portfolio holder for communities and sport, saying: "Our Environmental Protection team is actively investigating the illegally dumped waste on Westgate Street.

Four black bin bags of illegally dumped rubbish were spotted outside of the restaurant (Image: Oli Picton) "We take all instances of illegal dumping extremely seriously, as they not only impact the environment but also pose a significant impact to our community.

Councillor John Cook (Image: Newsquest)

"We encourage residents to report any instances of illegal dumping online at my.ipswich.gov.uk and we take tough action against all identified offenders."

Ipswich Borough Council has the power to issue unlimited fines in relation to the dumping of illegal waste, which can also carry a sentence of up to five years.

The restaurant where the bags were left was not open on Monday (Image: Oli Picton) Fly-tipping has been an issue in Ipswich in recent months, with cases of illegally-dumped waste in Suffolk Road reported in November which one man described as "a blight on the neighbourhood".

As well as this, a disabled woman was unable to leave her flat last month as a mattress, clothes and bedding were dumped outside her door, something she says happens on a daily basis.

In October, a father of two also complained that a mattress was left in an alleyway on Hartley Street in Ipswich. He branded the incident "appalling" and "disgusting".

Ipswich Borough Council encourages anyone who spots illegally dumped waste to report it through the local authority's website.