This weekend, Harrow police joined forces with Harrow Council’s Green Team and ‘Harrow Litter Pickers’, a collective of volunteers dedicating their free time to clean up the streets of Harrow, in a special community ‘Day of Action’.
The aim of the day was to combat both fly-tipping and anti-social behaviour in the borough, and raise awareness by providing residents with more information as to how they can help.
Sergeant Paul McCauley from Harrow police and the group co-ordinators from Harrow Litter Pickers, Keith Hewat and Casey Dalton, led the volunteers around the Wealdstone area to pick up litter and tackle the ever-growing issue of fly-tipping.
A remarkable 8.5 tonnes of waste, including items like mattresses, cribs, and sofas, were successfully cleared from the streets of Wealdstone.
Wealdstone police, expressing their gratitude on X (formerly Twitter), hailed the Harrow Litter Pickers as an outstanding volunteer group. They also extended their thanks to Harrow Council’s Green Team for their assistance.
Harrow Council support the group with PPE and equipment and their contribution is greatly welcomed by the volunteers.
“We work with the council and want to see the borough we live in looking good and for the community to take pride in their area, as little as 5 mins can make a difference”, said Casey Dalton.
Harrow Litter Pickers have 680 volunteers on a flexible drop-in basis across the borough and they go out 2-3 times a week. “It certainly keeps us fit”, said Keith.
Sgt McCauley spoke to local shops and restaurants about the scheme encouraging every unit to keep their shop front tidy and inviting to potential customers.
“Its important that the area looks presentable and approachable, a cleaner high street creates a better attitude”, he said.
“The work the team do is very important, they have also picked up drug paraphernalia and weaponry which have been handed to the police”, said Sgt McCauley. A total of 36 knives and two handguns to be exact.
Harrow Litter Pickers attend Shaftsbury Circle every week where they clear approx 20-30 bags of rubbish each week, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. In what may seem like a thankless task, it’s clear that the volunteers are making a positive contribution and keep our borough tidy.
O’Donovan Waste Disposal supplied the teams today with a skip, swiftly filled with bulk waste from fly tipping thanks to the collaborative efforts of everyone involved.
A volunteer told us, “We put up the event listings up on Facebook and whoever can come just turns up. Ever since covid, this has been a really good way for me to get back into keeping fit and social”.
Woody’s Grill in Wealdstone generously provided lunch to volunteers as a token of appreciation for their dedicated efforts.
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