Pesticides are poisons designed to kill living organisms and they can also have harmful effects on non-target species, including people. There are ongoing concerns about the use of glyphosate and its links to cancer and other diseases. Ending the use of pesticides in towns and cities will reduce public exposure [...]
‘Pesticides’ is an umbrella term for a wide range of compounds including herbicides (designed to kill plants), insecticides, fungicides, rodenticides, molluscicides and nematicides. There is a common misconception that the term ‘pesticides’ refers solely to substances designed to kill insects, but this is incorrect. The Pesticide-Free Towns campaign focuses on [...]
Glyphosate is a broad-spectrum, systemic herbicide used to control weeds. It is the most widely-used herbicide in the world and is used in public spaces in most villages, towns and cities of the UK. It is classified as a Highly Hazardous Pesticide (HHP) due to its potential harmful impact on [...]
In many cases, there is a need to control invasive species such as Japanese knotweed and giant hogweed. Removal might be required to protect human health, ensure infrastructure is not damaged or, in the case of some invasive species, there is a legal requirement to remove them. Pesticides are the [...]
Absolutely! Countries such as France and Belgium banned pesticides from public spaces many years ago without any issues. Just take a look at the shots of Paris during the 2024 Summer Olympics and you will see how well-cared for it looked without using any pesticides. Having said that, it is [...]
UK councils are currently spending large amounts of public funds on applying pesticides for weed control in public spaces. While ending the use of pesticides can increase costs for councils, it is also possible for a pesticide-free approach to lead to significant cost-savings. As just one of many examples, Hackney [...]
Yes! They do not include any pesticides used by thousands of towns and parish councils across the UK.
The vast majority of pesticides used by UK local councils are herbicides (or ‘weedkillers’) aimed at removing plants from hard surfaces such as streets, pavements, pathways and on housing estates under council control. They are also used in green spaces, most notably parks, playgrounds, sports pitches, road verges and cemeteries. [...]
Of the 368 responses we received from UK councils, we estimate that around 45% are taking action to end or reduce their pesticide use. This can range from small actions, such as running a trial of non-chemical alternatives in one part of a town to councils that have managed to [...]
There are many users of pesticides in urban areas. Even looking just at local authorities often reveals a confusing picture, with councils of various levels responsible for maintaining different areas. For example, a town council may be responsible for parks and decide that they aren’t going to use pesticides in [...]
We asked councils about their pesticide use from 1st January to 31st December 2024. However, councils constantly adapt their approach to pesticides so the situation may have changed since then. The best way to ensure that you have up to date pesticide usage data is to check with your local [...]
When a council makes progress on going pesticide-free it can take a variety of forms. Key positive steps include: passing a council Motion, introducing a policy or making some other kind of public commitment to reduce and ultimately end pesticide use; and commissioning thorough trials to explore non-chemical alternatives. While [...]
While the council might not be using pesticides it is possible that other land managers in your area are still using them. This might be the case with private land such as shopping centres and housing estates. Similarly, areas of a town or city (particularly roads and streets), might not [...]
If a council tells you that it is not using pesticides in a particular area then it is a good indication that the area in question is pesticide-free, but it is unfortunately not definitive. This is because pesticide application is conducted by varying levels of local authorities so, in some [...]
We sent Freedom of Information (FoI) requests to a total of 390 local authorities in all four UK nations. This covered all the 375 principal local authorities in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. We included city, borough, district and county councils. The list of councils we purchased from a [...]
Between January and May 2025, we sent Freedom of Information (FoI) requests to a total of 390 local authorities in all four UK nations. We included city, borough, district and county councils. The list of councils we purchased from a third party also included a handful of town councils to [...]
In the ten years since we launched the Pesticide-Free Towns campaign, we have done our best to keep on top of all the changes that have been made by UK councils. However, as the campaign has made more and more progress, increasing numbers of councils have taken action to reduce [...]