A letter threatening a fine can do wonders for motivation when it comes to tidying up your mess.

That’s what happened with these two homes in Plumstead and Woolwich that had front gardens overflowing with rubbish.

Both homes, one in Kings Highway and the other in Paget Rise, had rubbish piled so high you could barely see the windows of the ground floor.

After receiving complaints, Greenwich Council used its powers to serve Community Protection Warnings, which warn that your messy front gardens could land you with a fine of up to £2,500.

In cases where the owners cannot be traced, the warnings are put on a written notice on the premises, and council staff can clean the rubbish themselves and bill the owner.

It’s even worse if you are a group or organisation, as you can be fined up to £20,000 for not cleaning up your mess.

For these two homes, the front gardens were cleared in short order once the notices were sent through their letterboxes.

Councillor Jackie Smith, cabinet member for community safety and environment, said: “The threat of a fine or prosecution did the trick to get rid of these two eyesores which had become blights on their streets and the neighbourhood.

“It is incredibly disrespectful to neighbours and the community to use a front garden as a rubbish tip. The Council will use all its powers to get people to clean up gardens or open space they are responsible for including serving Community Protection Notices. We are warning people that if they breach the requirements of a CPN it’s a criminal offence.

“This action is part of our borough wide campaign to have the cleanest streets in London. Having clean and tidy streets has a major impact on everyone’s quality of life.”