East Hampshire District Council is trying to track down the origins of nursery equipment which was fly-tipped in Steep this week.

The rubbish was left in Harrow Lane over night on 1 September and the council’s environmental team is trying to track down who is responsible.

Rachel Gorvin, EHDC Contracts Monitoring Officer, said: “The waste dumped is quite distinctive and looks like it has come from a nursery or similar.

“If we could trace the source we might be able to find out how it ended up dumped in the countryside.

“Fly-tipping is a blight on the beautiful countryside of East Hampshire. Not only is it unsightly but it also poses a danger to people, animals and the environment. A number of fly tips contain hazardous waste such as asbestos or chemicals.

“If you have any information about this or any other fly tip please let us know.”

If you recognise any of the items please contact the council’s Environmental Services Team on 01730 266551.

Claire McCutcheon of The Harrow pub said the flytipped items were mainly children’s toys such as a mini plastic Welsh dresser, a Noddy picture and little chairs. There was also a fridge, camp bed, bits of metal and plastic stacking boxes.“It’s all fairly identifiable stuff so there’s hope for a prosecution,” she said. “This is the countryside and people shouldn’t be spoiling it like this. They should go to the dump like everyone else. And if they did homes could probably be found for some of it, as it is pretty good stuff.”