Exeter City Council is one of a number of big organisations that have pledged to take part in The Great British Spring Clean in March.

Some of our staff will take to the streets on 18 March to take part in Keep Britain Tidy’s nationwide event. The Council is organising the Exeter event, which will set off from Exeter City Football Club’s St James Park at 10am. Thousands of similar events will take place across the country between 20 March and 13 April.

A number of groups and organisations have already said they will taking part in the Exeter event, including Exeter City Football Club, the University of Exeter, Exeter Mosque and St James Forum. Members of the public can also take part on the day.

Last year the Great British Spring Clean saw 563,163 people – including 175,055 students volunteering their time to take part in the campaign. Cleaning up streets, parks and beaches, litter heroes across the country have been making big improvements to the environment on their doorstep.

A total of 17,097 clean-ups were held and 957,377 bags of litter collected. That’s the equivalent of 239,344 wheelie bins full of rubbish or 4,308 tonnes worth. Around 61% of the litter collected was general waste and 39% was able to be recycled.

This year’s campaign has the potential to be just as big if not even bigger still!

Cllr David Harvey, Lead Councillor for Environment and City Management, said: “This is a fantastic event and it’ s lovely to see so many Exeter groups and organisations offering up their time and coming together to tidy up their neighbourhood.”

Any groups and organisations wishing to take part in the Exeter event can contact matt.hulland@exeter.gov.uk

The City Council also supports community groups and individuals that want to carry out litter picks throughout the year. It can supply equipment including litter pickers, gloves and hi-vis jackets. Those interested can contact the Council on 01392 262633 to arrange use of the equipment.