Help needed for community clean-up days in Warwick district

A group of volunteers who clean up the streets in the Warwick district are appealing for help with their next community clean-up days.
Photo from the 'Day of Action' by Leam Trash Friends. Photo submitted.Photo from the 'Day of Action' by Leam Trash Friends. Photo submitted.
Photo from the 'Day of Action' by Leam Trash Friends. Photo submitted.

A group of volunteers who clean up the streets in the Warwick district are appealing for help with their next community clean-up days.

The clean-up days have been organised by Leam Trash Friends who help clear needles and collect and gather rubbish and fly-tipping for the council to collect. They are also trying to raise awareness about the problems via social media.

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The volunteer group started their work in January and since then have clean-up tonnes of rubbish as well as thousands of needles from the streets. They also held a 'day of action' in March where they were joined by volunteers from Jaguar Land Rover, Warwick District Council, other local councillors, members of the public and staff from Homes for Students.

Photo from the 'Day of Action' by Leam Trash Friends. Photo submitted.Photo from the 'Day of Action' by Leam Trash Friends. Photo submitted.
Photo from the 'Day of Action' by Leam Trash Friends. Photo submitted.
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The clean-up days are due to take place on June 4 and June 5 in the Leamington area and on June 6 in the Whitnash and Warwick area. The exact locations are yet to be confirmed.

A spokesperson from Leam Trash Friends said: “We are looking for people to join us and for donations like crisps, biscuits, drinks, gloves, gardening shears, buckets and four fence panels.

“We are joining forces with staff from The Midcounties Coop (the main supporters over the three days as part of their volunteering week) and The Coop across the three days including world environment day on June 5.

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“We are clearing back overgrown bushes and trees restricting access/lighting to public footpaths as well as our usual litter picking. We anticipate removing some eight tonnes of waste if not more over the three days.”

"Since our inception we have managed to clear 17 tonnes of street litter, flytipping and overgrowth, cleared 3,848 used needles, collected 13 large knives and a machete, recovered 44 items of stolen property and found £500 of drugs.

"We have also established a joint problem solving action plan with many stakeholders to address the used needle epidemic spreading across the district.

“I am delighted to be partnering with the Coop and Midcounties Coop for this event. We desperately need help to enable this to happen with refreshments and equipment to make the biggest success of the days.

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“We have 45 people so far across the three days which gives us huge scope to tackle head on many problem areas.”

Mike Pickering, CSR Manager at The Midcounties Co-operative, said: “At The Midcounties Co-operative, we believe that community-focused action can have a big impact. Our clean-up on 5th June aims to empower people to take more care over their communities and raise awareness about littering and plastic pollution.

“We want to inspire people to make a pledge to help tackle single use plastics, whether that be avoiding single-use plastic where possible or re-using waste materials to create something useful. We’d encourage anyone and everyone to get involved and work together to make a positive impact to our environment.”

Those attending the event will also have the chance to meet Cal Major, founder of the environmental movement Paddle Against Plastic and The Midcounties Co-operative’s new environmental ambassador who will be leading the clean up.

To donate items or volunteer on the clean up days email: [email protected] or go to the Leam Trash Friends Facebook Page by clicking here