But fuming Georgia Elliot, 15, was left with egg on her face when the community officer told her to shell out £80.

And Georgia, who admitted dropping the foil wrapper on Pegler Way last Monday, reckons the punishment simply doesn't fit the crime.

She said: "I was with a couple of friends and I dropped a bit of the wrapper, a man stopped and he turned out to be a community police officer. I said sorry and I picked it up, I thought he was just going to give me a caution.

"I don't think it's fair at all. A 15-year-old can't pay because they can't have a job; they just expect a parent to pay it, which isn't right."

And Georgia's dad Richard, from Redehall Road, Smallfield, said he couldn't believe the way his daughter had been treated.

He explained: "I mean she gets £16 a week pocket money and that's for clothes that a 15-year-old would buy, so it's about five weeks pocket money. The council's attitude was basically 'these are the rules, pay up or face the legal consequences.'"

The fuming dad also criticised town hall bosses for failing to stick to government guidelines, which advise against fining children under 16.

He said: "Government guidelines say that fixed penalty notices shouldn't be given out to children under 16, I guess because children aren't working and don't have the means to pay them."

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