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Councils across the UK are reporting a surge in fly-tipping as many household waste centres have closed during the coronavirus pandemic.

West Oxfordshire District Council says waste dumped in its area has increased by 300%, while others have reported incidents of fly-tipping outside supermarkets, charity shops and in green spaces.

Waste disposal teams are said to be "stretched thin" and "struggling" with the amount of waste.

A large number of household recycling centres have been forced to close and some street cleaning teams have been suspended as councils say they must prioritise resources.

Meanwhile, more than a third of English councils have temporarily stopped collections of garden waste, according to analysis by PA news agency.

Councils have raised concerns that a "wave of waste" will emerge from households in the coming weeks, as families are spending more time at home and stocking up on food and other items.

The District Councils' Network has issued a plea to homeowners to minimise the rubbish they throw away and avoid burning this on bonfires.

Vale of Glamorgan Council in Wales says it is investigating an incident outside Cardiff Airport and will be looking to prosecute.

River Clyde Homes, an Iverclyde-based housing association, said it had seen a "sharp increase" in fly-tipping across the area, and shared pictures of dumped items including a leather sofa, deckchairs and an ironing board.

North Ayrshire Council said waste dumped in its area was "simply unacceptable".

Councillor Jim Montgomerie said: "It means we are wasting time and resources tidying this mess when officers could be more usefully deployed helping some of our most vulnerable residents.

"Fly-tipping is always very, very selfish but in the situation we all face just now it is particularly hard to take. We all need to be in this together and this is just slowing us all down and very frustrating."

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Anne Clarke, a councillor for Childs Hill in north London, said fly-tipping is "appalling behaviour at the best of times".

"Our bin collectors & council employees are working hard & want to keep healthy like everyone else. They were already stretched thin but now struggling even more," she wrote on Twitter.

Frustrated residents have also shared pictures of dumped items on social media.

In Leeds, a social media user said they had spotted "colouring books, broken TVs and a smashed wardrobe" outside a Salvation Army centre, which was said to have fallen victim to "a lot" of fly-tipping.

Another man shared footage of waste dumped on a residential road, writing: "Can't believe how some of our neighbours are behaving when they know the bin collectors are stretched."

Fly-tipping is a serious criminal offence, and those who are prosecuted can be landed with a fine of up to £50,000 or up to five years in prison.