McDonald's staff help collect more than 40 bags of waste with litter pick in Northamptonshire

More than 35 volunteers helped collect dozens of bags of rubbish in and around a fast-food restaurant in Wellingborough.
Staff from McDonald's in London Road, Wellingborough, took part in Clean for the Queen in and around the branchStaff from McDonald's in London Road, Wellingborough, took part in Clean for the Queen in and around the branch
Staff from McDonald's in London Road, Wellingborough, took part in Clean for the Queen in and around the branch

Local McDonald’s franchisee Perry Akhtar and staff from his London Road restaurant joined forces with members of the community on Saturday (March 5) to clean up a mile stretch of London Road in Wellingborough as well as the surrounding woodland and side streets.

The team embarked on the litter picking challenge as part of the Clean for the Queen campaign, the UK’s largest litter pick which aims to get local areas looking their best in the year of the Queen’s 90th birthday.

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The litter party, made up of more than 35 volunteers, donned high visibility jackets and were armed with litter pickers provided by Wellingborough Norse to clear up the area.

Staff from McDonald's in London Road, Wellingborough, taking part in the litter pickStaff from McDonald's in London Road, Wellingborough, taking part in the litter pick
Staff from McDonald's in London Road, Wellingborough, taking part in the litter pick

The volunteers collected moer than 40 bags of litter as they looked to encourage the community to take responsibility for keeping their neighbourhood litter-free and to take pride in their local environment.

Mr Akhtar said: “We supported Clean for the Queen because we understand the importance of having clean and welcoming areas to live and work in.

“I’d like to thank everyone involved for their hard work.

“It’s amazing what can be achieved when people pull together.

Staff from McDonald's in London Road, Wellingborough, taking part in the litter pickStaff from McDonald's in London Road, Wellingborough, taking part in the litter pick
Staff from McDonald's in London Road, Wellingborough, taking part in the litter pick
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“To have over 35 volunteers clearing up 40 bags of rubbish is a fantastic effort – none of which would have been possible without the help of everyone involved in the day.

“It’s vital that we all do our bit to tackle the issue.

“It’s great to see that businesses like mine and residents have both made a commitment to help protect the environment in their local community.

“I hope that this event will help to continue raising awareness of the importance of disposing of rubbish responsibly.”

The clean-up is just one event that will form part of a range of McDonald’s activity this year to encourage local communities to take action and work together to look after the environment.

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A recent survey conducted by Populus found that 90 per cent of respondents consider litter to be a big issue, with 81 per cent saying that seeing litter makes them angry and frustrated.

About 2.25 million pieces of litter are dropped on the streets of the UK every day, equating to 30 million tons of rubbish that is collected from England’s streets each year at a cost of over a £1 billion to clean up.

Adrian Evans, Clean for the Queen campaign director, said: “Our ambition was to create a community inspired, grass-roots mass action event – one that will become a recurring annual initiative.

“We feel that marking the Queen’s 90th birthday with the inaugural clean-up is a wonderful way to kick-start it to life.

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“We want to show that millions of people in this country care passionately about the litter affecting the nation and are prepared to get out and do something about it.

“Everyone in this country will reap the benefits.”

Environment Minister Rory Stewart said: “Everyone has a responsibility to keep their community tidy and this campaign provides us with a great chance to protect our wildlife and improve the quality of our streets and public spaces.

“I hope it will help lead to a lasting legacy of a cleaner, tidier Britain.”

For more information go to www.cleanforthequeen.co.uk.