Britain’s Litter Heroes Unite to Clean Up Communities

Every year, over 30 million tonnes of litter are discarded in Britain, creating a visible eyesore in our neighborhoods, endangering wildlife, and incurring an estimated annual cost of £1 billion for cleanup efforts.

Fortunately, Keep Britain Tidy’s Great British Spring Clean and Great Big School Clean are back from 13-29 March, rallying hundreds of thousands of individuals to enhance the cleanliness of our streets. Since its inception as a one-time initiative in 2016, a legion of Litter Heroes have demonstrated their commitment to their surroundings by collecting over 4.5 million bags of waste from streets, parks, fields, riverbanks, and beaches across the UK.

The Great British Spring Clean is scheduled for 13-29 March. Enroll now at keepbritaintidy.org and commit to gathering as many bin bags as you wish. Whether as a group, individual, or school, simply provide your name, email, postcode, and specify the number of bags you aim to collect.

Last year, nearly 400,000 volunteers partook in the annual cleanup, amassing around 462,000 bags of rubbish. A survey showed that 95% of participants believed their actions significantly improved their local areas.

Among this year’s advocates is civil servant Emdad Rahman, one of Keep Britain Tidy’s 200 Litter Hero Ambassadors. Emdad, backed by players of People’s Postcode Lottery, leads the Little Litter League to inspire youth and families to cherish the environment through regular litter-picking sessions and educational initiatives.

Joining the ranks of heroes is Sarah Drakes, Nestlé Confectionery UK&I’s sustainability manager, who has been supporting the Great British Spring Clean for six years, organizing litter-picking events and promoting awareness within her company.

KFC UK&I, in a longstanding partnership with Keep Britain Tidy, ensures its teams participate in the annual Spring Clean to maintain clean communities around their restaurants. Mars Wrigley has been backing the campaign for nearly a decade and funds the Chewing Gum Task Force, investing millions to reduce gum litter nationwide.

The Great British Spring Clean is a chance to contribute positively to your community by pledging to pick up litter starting from 13 February. Allison Ogden-Newton OBE, Keep Britain Tidy’s CEO, commended volunteers for removing over four million bags of harmful litter, emphasizing the importance of their efforts.

Laura Chow, head of charities at People’s Postcode Lottery, commended the volunteers for their environmental protection endeavors, highlighting the collective responsibility in safeguarding nature.

This year’s campaign, supported by players of People’s Postcode Lottery, media partners Bauer Media Outdoor, Magic Radio, and The Mirror, along with collaborating partners like KFC UK&I, Mars Wrigley, McDonald’s, Nestlé, Pepsi Max, and Walkers, aims to further the cause of cleaning up communities.

(Note: The Great British Spring Clean includes the Spring Clean Cymru in Wales from 13-29 March and Spring Clean Scotland in Scotland from 13 March-24 April.)