Community litter picking initiative launched for Horsham district

Horsham District Council’s Adopt-a Street initiative already has more than 400 people signed up across the district, but officers and volunteers manned a pop-up shop in Swan Walk Shopping Centre on Monday March 2 to encourage more people to sign up.

The project aims to encourage residents to take extra care of their street or any area they value by volunteering to pick up litter left by others.

Volunteers are provided with health and safety training, advice to co-ordinate efforts, and equipment such as bags, litter pickers, protective gloves and high-visibility jackets by the council.

Andrew Baldwin (Con, Holbrook East), HDC’s cabinet member for the environment, explained that it spends around £1m a year picking litter up and accumulates close to 14m tonnes a month.

He added: “We have a big problem with people throwing litter out car windows. Generally the side of the roads are generally quite grubby.”

He continued: “As a country we are a bit dirtier than other countries because a lot of people think it’s big or clever to drop litter.”

The council will also be putting orange signs on the sides of several roads to deter littering. One reads: “Don’t be a loser, take your litter home.” Another says: “Have pride in our county, take your litter home.”

Tim Smith, one of the volunteers at the official launch on Monday, started litter picking in Partridge Green on an uncoordinated basis but contacted his parish council for help, and as well as doing roads in the village, also does a section of the Downs Link.

Sue Brundish, chair of Horsham in Bloom, described the scheme as very similar to other projects around the country ‘encouraging people to take pride in their community’.

For more information call HDC’s Adopt-a-Street coordinator Karen Grisley on 01403 739387 or 07090 442376 or email [email protected]

Many parishes are also holding neighbourhood clean-up events throughout March and April. To see which visit http://bit.ly/1GfR7ZY