Local community helps us fill 12 bags of rubbish at Derker litter pick

27/09/2022

Recently pupils from local primary school Woodlands Primary Academy, members of Friends of Stoneleigh Park and Councillor Angela Cosgrove joined our team to litter pick their way round the Derker neighbourhood and clear 12 bin bags of rubbish from the streets. Great work!

Armed with high-vis vests, gloves and litter pickers, the dedicated group set out to help clean up their community, where litter and rubbish have been identified as issues for local people. Takeaway boxes, plastic bottles, cans, bottle tops, nappies and an old paddling pool were some of the things the team cleared during their litter picking stint.

And just look at the difference they made to one stretch of land:

Recently pupils from local primary school Woodlands Primary Academy, members of Friends of Stoneleigh Park and Councillor Angela Cosgrove joined team FCHO to litter pick their way round the Derker neighbourhood and clear 12 bin bags of rubbish from the streets.

Rachael Evason, Neighbourhood Coordinator for Derker said: “This community litter pick was a terrific team effort – huge thanks to everyone for coming together and helping to improve your local area.

“The school pupils and volunteers really rose to the challenge of clearing the litter and were delighted with how much they collected at the end, though they were also disappointed to see so much rubbish dumped in the first place. The school and Friends of Stoneleigh Park are setting an excellent example for others and showing how everyone can do their bit to help tackle littering in neighbourhoods. Well done to everyone who took part.”

Laura Humble, Vice Principal at Woodlands Primary Academy said: "As a Rights Respecting School we are always keen to be involved and help to drive initiatives to improve our local community. Our children have been telling us that they feel unsafe playing outside when the streets are covered with rubbish. They asked the adults in school to help them to find a way to access their right to have a safe area to play in outside of school. By joining forces with Friends of Stoneleigh Park and FCHO we've been able to step up this campaign and seen a real and immediate impact on our doorsteps. Our children can wait to see where this campaign takes them next."

Recently pupils from local primary school Woodlands Primary Academy, members of Friends of Stoneleigh Park and Councillor Angela Cosgrove joined team FCHO to litter pick their way round the Derker neighbourhood and clear 12 bin bags of rubbish from the streets

We know that most people take pride in where they live, but unfortunately a minority don’t and rubbish and fly tipping are persistent issues in a number of our neighbourhoods. We know the negative impact this has on people and their area, that’s why last autumn we launched three pilot projects to deal with the amount of rubbish dumped on FCHO-owned land. The results are now shaping our future approach that will help make a positive difference to our customers and neighbourhoods.

Look out for news coming soon about more community litter picks like this with local partners, neighbourhood clear up days and other ways we’re tackling the issue of rubbish and fly tipping in our neighbourhoods.