A couple has been accused of ruining their countryside village by piling tonnes of junk in their front and back gardens.
Scraps of metal, bikes and a wheelbarrow are just some of the items residents say are creating an eyesore in the area, which includes a Grade I listed Saxon church. But, despite the local council issuing an enforcement notice for it to be cleared up, the homeowners, Sandra Goodard, 63, and Paul Brooks, 60, insist they are just trying to help save the environment.
Grandmother-of-five Ms Goodard, who runs waste management company Suffolk Recycling, says she is preventing unnecessary use of landfill sites, explaining: "Sometimes what you don’t see is worse than what you do see. We do not run the business from home. We run it from the van.
"It’s just that we are a bit of a hoarder. We buy stuff and I think we’ll do stuff with it and I do not do it."
The mess has caused an uproar in sleepy Monks Eleigh, near Lavenham in Suffolk. Responding to her critics, Ms Goodard said: "It’s all started getting a bit stupid, what people are saying on social media.
"One said 'They’re obviously hoarders, so I hope the council will give them some help because it’s obviously an illness'. I’m not nutty. They [all the items] all go to car boot sales, but quite a lot is mine to keep. I do car boots all over, wherever we are at the time."
The Facebook page of the couple's business states: "We are a local, family-run business who have been in the business of recycling and reuse for over 30 years. We are truly passionate about finding a new home for your rubbish or items that are no longer of use to you.’
Posts include one from April that said: "Busy start of the week! We’ve been clearing and recycling for two of our customers in Monks Eleigh". Another, from March, added: "It’s that time of year again. Spring equinox has been and we’re ready for your spring clear out."
The business page, which is also full of warnings about avoiding fly-tipping by using reputable rubbish removal firms, has 28 followers and has had 24 ‘likes’. The van used for the business has stickers on the side that give its name and phone number and says: "Waste clearance. Houses, garages, offices, pubs, shops, hotels restaurants".
People living near the pair, who have lived in their home, surrounded by neatly trimmed hedges, mown lawns and sweeping fields since 1998, are not impressed.
One said: "There is just no consideration for anyone. It is just really annoying. It should not be allowed – it is just disgusting." Another added: "It’s a mess. They’ve been doing it for a long time, ever since I’ve been here."
The piles of junk, which do appear to have been organised in some semblance of order, were formally discussed at Monks Eleigh Parish Council in March.
A district council spokesman said: "We have now served a notice on the owners/occupiers requiring the site to be cleared of all items that are not strictly necessary or associated with the ordinary use of the property as a home. If there is no appeal against this, the notice comes into effect on September 26 and they will have three months to comply with it."
The spokesman added: "We are committed to maintaining the standard of the environment for our local communities. If there is an untidy property that is detrimental to the local neighbourhood, we will talk to owners or occupiers to advise what action they need to take."
Ms Goodard admitted she is not planning to appeal against the enforcement notice. She said: "It’s all being sorted at the moment. We’re clearing it."