APPENDIX 2
Local Environmental Audit and Management Systems (LEAMS)
Methodology
Introduction
The Local Environmental Audit and Management System (LEAMS), is a programme
managed by Keep Scotland Beautiful and is aimed at measuring and improving the
cleanliness standards throughout Scotland. It is now in its fourth year and all 32 Local
Authorities in Scotland are involved in the programme.
From April 2004 LEAMS has been a Statutory Performance Indicator for Local Authorities.
Each year between the periods of April to February seven surveys are conducted to
determine the following:
Standard of Cleanliness
Sources of Litter
Types of Litter
Adverse Environmental Quality Indicators.
Each survey is a Random Sample of 2% of all streets and functional sites within Fife
returning a total 14% yearly sample.
The seven surveys are programmed for completion in the months of:
April
June
August
October
December
February
April - February
Internal Fife Council Survey – conducted by Fife Council staff.
Internal Fife Council Survey – conducted by Fife Council staff.
Partnership Survey – conducted by visiting staff from one of
the other 31 Authorities in Scotland. It will not be the same
Authority on each occasion.
Internal Fife Council Survey – conducted by Fife Council staff.
Internal Fife Council Survey – conducted by Fife Council staff.
Partnership Survey – conducted by visiting staff from one of
the other 31 Authorities in Scotland. It will not be the same
Authority on each occasion.
Keep Scotland Validation Survey – conducted by KSB staff at
some date within the year.
The measurement method is the “Cleanliness Index” (CI). The CI provides an indication of
the standard of cleanliness experienced in an area at the time of the survey. An area with
a CI of ‘0’ would consist of heavily littered sites, whereas a CI of ‘100’ would represent an
area completely free of any litter or refuse.
The minimum level of 67 is required by the Environmental Protection Act (1990) and its
attendant Code of Practice on Litter and Refuse (Scotland) 2006.
Monitoring
Monitoring internally allows the Local Authority to establish base-line information on how
they are improving with regards to street cleansing. This information can be used as a
management tool to assess problem areas and where to increase or decrease resources.
Therefore monitoring can be used to ensure that resources are being used efficiently and
where they are most needed. Monitoring allows authorities to measure continuous service
improvement. The information collected whilst surveying allows the Local Authority to
establish as to whether they are complying with the requirements of the Environmental
Protection Act 1990 – Part IV.
Definitions of Monitored Sites
Monitored sites will be local authority owned and cleansed and may include subways and
bridges (if they are a continuation of a road). They should not include covered shopping
precincts and covered markets. Within each of the sites to be surveyed, the actual areas of
study are called transects. A transect will always be 50 meters long and approximately 2
meters wide. The width of transects will vary according to the type of site as pavements
are not all the same width. A transect should include the whole width of the pavement,
kerb and channel (gutter), but it should not include the boundary structure such as hedge,
base of adjacent property (for example a shop or house), fence etc.
Grades of Cleanliness
Each transect should be graded using the system outlined in the Code of Practice on
Litter and Refuse.
GRADE A
NO LITTER OR REFUSE
The transect is completely free of
litter and refuse
GRADE B
PREDOMINATELY FREE OF
LITTER AND REFUSE – NO
ACCUMULATIONS
Small items of litter in transect
GRADE C
WIDESPREAD DISTRIBUTION OF
LITTER AND REFUSE WITH MINOR
ACCUMULATIONS
Accumulations of litter items with
some larger ones present
GRADE D
HEAVILY LITTERED WITH
SIGNIFICANT ACCUMULATIONS
Larger items present along the
transect, either in the gutter, on the
pavement or both
Grade A is the standard which a thorough conventional sweeping/litter-picking should
achieve.
Adverse Environmental Quality Indicators (AEQIs)
In addition to the Cleanliness Grades, there are a number of other items that surveyors are
required to observe within the transect areas, namely AEQI’S. The presence or absence
of the following AEQIs should be recorded in the transect:
Fly Posting – defined as stickers or posters placed in unauthorised places and not on
billboards. Unauthorised places refer to buildings, bus shelters, fence posts, etc. within the
transect. Bill boards are legal sites which are set aside for posters and other advertising
material. Council notices are not classed as fly posting.
Graffiti – defined as unauthorised drawing or writing on surrounding buildings or street
furniture such as benches, lampposts, litter bins etc.
Dog Fouling - may be present where the cleanliness of an area has fallen to grade B, C
or D, and must be considered alongside other litter and refuse when determining the
cleanliness grade.
Vandalism - defined as wilful and senseless damage of property which adversely affects
the quality of life and the environment, e.g. smashed bus shelter windows, broken street
seating. A description of the vandalism should be given in the comments section on the
survey form.
Weeds - the presence of weeds in the transect may indicate poor / infrequent sweeping
and can trap litter
Detritus – There is no statutory definition of Detritus, however Detritus usually comprises
a combination of: dust, mud, soil, grit/salt, leaf and blossom fall and other natural debris.
Litter bins / overflowing litter bins
The number of litter bins within a transect should be noted during the survey. If a litter bin
within the transect is overflowing, this should also be recorded. Overflowing litter bins are
defined as litter bins, used by the public, which are over 75% full. This is known as the
Maximum Serviceable Limit and above this limit the litter contained may start to spill out
onto the street. The transect should be graded according to the litter from the bin and
within the transect. If a litter bin in a transect is not local authority owned, this should be
noted in the comments section on the survey form.
Types of Litter
The presence of the four most commonly found types of litter within the transect should
also be recorded. These are:
Smoking related litter – cigarette ends, matches, matchboxes, cigarette packaging,etc.
Drinks related litter - drinks cans & bottles, cups, straws, lids
Sweet wrappers – includes chewing gum wrappers & crisp packets
Fast food packaging – fish & chip wrappers, polystyrene cartons, burger wrappers,
plastic cutlery, etc.
Sources of Litter
Each transect containing litter should also have the sources of litter identified. A transect
may contain more than one source of litter – if an item does not fit into one of the first 5
categories listed below, it should be recorded in the ‘other category’ and a description
given in the comments section of the survey form. The categories are as follows:
Pedestrian / individual – e.g. drinks cans, sweet wrappers, fast food packaging, lottery
tickets, cigarette ends, matches
Business Waste – any waste that has come directly from a business, e.g. headed paper,
envelopes, advertising flyers. This category also includes elastic bands dropped by the
postman.
Domestic Waste – any waste that has escaped from domestic refuse, e.g. household
packaging
Construction Waste – any waste that has come from construction work, e.g. builders’
rubble, sandbags
Animal Faeces – any type of animal faeces (only dog faeces affects the cleanliness
grade)
Other – any other litter which does not fit into the above categories, e.g. vehicle parts
If a grade B, C or D grade is given to a transect then at least one source of litter must be
identified.
If a grade A is achieved no sources of litter should be identified.
Cleanliness Index Calculation
Monitored transects are graded as A,B,C or D Grades as previously defined. These
grades are then weighted as:
A = 3 points
B = 2 points
C = 1 point
D = 0 point
The maximum score that could be obtained would be if all transects were graded as A (3
points). Therefore to calculate the Cleanliness Index the following formulae is applied:
Actual score of Transects
Maximum possible score
No. of Transects
5
60
13
7
Total
Actual Score
Maximum Possible
Cleanliness Index
x 100
Grade
A
B
C
D
148
255
Actual Score
15
120
13
0
148
=
58
=
58
Maximum Possible Score
15
180
39
21
255