Tidy Our Town: West Northamptonshire Council has ‘no current plans to introduce additional litter bins in 2024’

The Northants Litter Wombles work collaboratively with West Northamptonshire Council to ensure littering and fly tipping are tackled across the town.

An ongoing partnership sees the Wombles’ distinctive purple litter bags collected once they are filled and left at the roadside.

WNC has also been praised for helping to combat particularly bad fly tips – namely in our Tidy Our Town launch story with Mark Watson, who referred to the difference made at Sixfields Reservoir with their help.

However, following a request for comment from the Chronicle & Echo, it has been revealed that West Northamptonshire Council has “no current plans to introduce additional litter bins in 2024”.

The introduction of more bins is a priority for the Northants Litter Wombles moving forward, having already been made abundantly clear by founder Nicola Elliott and committee member Mark Watson in the first two weeks of the Tidy Our Town campaign.

External funding saw new bins installed, in areas such as Grange Park and along the A5, but there are currently no plans for the installation of more this year.

Last week, WNC announced the launch of a new campaign to “help reduce littering which blights our streets, roads and green spaces”.

Reference was made to its Litter Charter, which was launched in 2022 and sets out how the Council collaborates with partners – including the Litter Wombles, National Highways and community groups.

It also outlines how it enables community litter picks by providing equipment and making arrangements to collect the rubbish from public land, and how enforcement action is taken through fixed penalty notices and fines.

During March, WNC is “coordinating and supporting a range of community spring clean activities, which coincide with the National Spring Clean campaign organised by Keep Britain Tidy”.

To support these events, WNC has litter picking equipment available to borrow, litter sacks to supply, and offers guidance on how to safely organise a community litter pick.

When a litter pick has been registered on its ‘clean communities’ web page and the activity is complete, WNC will collect the rubbish.

Anti-littering messaging will be shared across the Council’s social media platforms and road traffic management signs to deter people – which is something the Northants Litter Wombles have pushed for more frequently across the area.

This builds on the fact higher fines for littering and other environmental crimes were introduced across West Northamptonshire from February 1. The maximum fine amount for those who litter has increased from £150 to £500, and from £400 to £1,000 for those caught fly-tipping.

The future of anti-littering education across West Northamptonshire

A council press release outlined that WNC “will also be working with young people to educate them on the harmful impact litter has and help inspire the next generation to keep our communities clean”.

This newspaper asked the Council to provide specific details about their education plans and what this will look like. This included a request for information on when education will take place throughout 2024, how regularly, which young people will receive it, and what it will entail.

The response was that “WNC is in the process of developing new initiatives to work with young people as part of the anti-litter campaign”, possibly as part of their Junior Citizen programme.

They said “more details will be shared as plans develop” and no further, more specific details, are outlined in the Litter Charter.

Education is an important priority for the Northants Litter Wombles, who would like to see more done across the county by local authorities. They hope this will build on their CLEAN Education Programme, which has been received by more than 20,000 students county-wide.

‘We’re committed to tackling this issue’

Councillor Phil Larratt, cabinet member for environment, transport, highways and waste at WNC, said: “It is disappointing that some people show such little regard for the environment and their local community that they drop litter wherever they like.

“We’re committed to tackling this issue, and it is always heartening to see the great work of our partners, officers and volunteers who work so hard to keep their communities clean and green.

“We want to do all we can to support their excellent work, as well as encourage and assist other groups to join them. By working together to clean our local area, we send a strong message that littering is antisocial and not acceptable.”

Cllr Larratt encourages anyone interested in holding a litter pick in their community to get in touch with the Council, to find out more about borrowing free equipment.

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.