Tidy Our Town: ‘The children are our future and will keep the litter picking momentum going’

In the latest instalment of the Tidy Our Town campaign, the Northants Litter Wombles’ events coordinator wanted to stress the importance of getting young people involved and continuing to educate them.

Alison McClean first started litter picking in the summer of 2021, before officially joining the Litter Wombles around three months later in September.

The way she got involved, by joining the Facebook group and going along to a group pick, is how they still encourage new members to join the ‘purple army’.

“It felt good to be part of something,” Alison told the Chronicle & Echo. “Everyone was really warm and welcoming. We worked as a team to gather so much stuff and, at my first pick, we collected 40 bags.

“It was nice to be with other like-minded folk as it was solitary before, wandering the streets alone.”

The Litter Wombles go beyond clearing the streets and have seen great success with their CLEAN Education Programme, which has reached more than 20,000 students across the county since the group launched in early 2021.

Alison said: “The children are our future and can educate their parents. They use disposable products and we teach them how to be a little more responsible with them.

“Everyone is aware the planet is warming up and the next generation are going to be responsible for maintaining what we’ve achieved so far. They can keep the momentum going.”

As the group typically finds that those who attend their litter picks are aged between 30 and 75, reaching out to younger members of the community has been an important task.

Talking about the thousands of young people who have engaged with their education programme, Alison described the “huge difference” it has made.

In recent weeks, Alison visited some children from Pineham Barns Primary School and was impressed to learn that looking after the environment is part of their curriculum.

“They are aware dropping litter is the wrong thing to do and the harm it causes,” she said. “Now we need to work out who it is that’s dropping it.”

The presentations, with interactive quizzes, engage the students – particularly when they are shown 10 everyday items and they have to guess how long they take to degrade.

Alison said: “They find trainers the most interesting and, if left in the environment, they take 80 years to degrade. The guessing game gets them thinking and they like to compete in the litter pick afterwards. They work as a team.

“They absolutely love it and the feedback is always positive. It’s the fact they go out and see the results of their actions.”

When asked what message she wanted to send about the importance of talking these issues through with young people, Alison said: “It’s paramount. Teaching good habits will mean they’ll carry them through life and lead by example.”

Alison believes it is promising to see that when one young person decides to regularly litter pick, others are influenced to do the same.

If you would like to get involved in the Tidy Our Town campaign, email [email protected].

To join the Northants Litter Wombles in their important work, visit the Facebook group here.