One bag, big difference – the Great British Spring Clean is back

The event is the country’s biggest mass action environmental campaign, encouraging people to work collaboratively with community organisations, businesses and councils to collect and safely dispose of litter from local streets, parks and open spaces. This year, the event is taking place between 25 March to 10 April.

Buckinghamshire Council will be supporting local litter picking events across the county, collecting waste from litter picking activities from an agreed, designated point or residential address, if groups contact the council in advance. In addition to this, free litter pickers and bags will be available to individuals and groups looking to get involved with the campaign.

As previous winners of the Great British September Clean Award at the Keep Britain Tidy Network Awards 2021, Buckinghamshire Council are keen to keep the momentum going when it comes to keeping Buckinghamshire beautiful, clean and tidy.

Last year during the Great British September Clean, Buckinghamshire Council supported litter picking events organised by parish councils, community groups and environmental groups involving over 627 volunteers who together spent 1,253 hours litter picking and collected more than 659 bags of rubbish.

Here's how you can get involved and show support for the Great British Spring Clean:

• Head over to Keep Britain Tidy to register your litter pick

Peter Strachan, Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Environment, said:

“The Great British Spring Clean is such a fantastic way for the local community to come together and make a positive impact on the environment in their local area. This year’s theme, ‘One bag, big difference’ really places emphasis on the importance of personal responsibility. If everyone takes a small action then collectively, they can make a big difference, and that’s what counts.

“Getting outdoors is so important for our physical and mental wellbeing, so it’s equally as important for us to take care of our local parks and green spaces so that we may continue to enjoy them for a long time to come.

“The council is also introducing extra cleansing and litter picking on some of the county's busiest roads. Roadside litter is an ongoing problem and often requires lane closures to allow crews to operate safely. This year the Council will increase the regular cleansing schedule from 4 per year to 6 on at least 4 key roads, in a bid to reduce roadside litter. We hope this will have a noticeable difference to our county's high speed roads and with extra education we hope to reduce how much litter is dropped in the first place.”

You can find out more about the national campaign, sign up and register your clean up on the Keep Britain Tidy website.