We are delighted to be sponsoring the community litter-picking group The Pickup Artists. We met with Karen (Keep Britain Tidy ambassador) Blanchfield today to litter pick around the Easter Park offices where we’re based. At first, we couldn’t see the litter but, once we got our eye in, there was a depressingly HUGE number of discarded bottles, cans, plastic and food wrappers. The more we found, the more we wanted to find. As odd as it might sound, it was a truly uplifting experience and we’re looking forward to our first community pick. We’re in awe of all these amazing people who willingly give their time to clear the waste left by others, and we’re honoured to be joining their ranks.

Most of us recognise that litter is a big problem in this country, but how can we spread the word about putting our litter in a bin or taking it home to recycle it? How can we educate people that littering socially immoral? And who’s really responsible for littering. According to research undertaken by YouGov on behalf of Keep Britain Tidy almost one in five people admit to leaving rubbish behind at the beach. It seems that the primary reason people leave their rubbish behind is because litter’s already there and nine out of every ten instances of littering occurred next to bins, particularly when they were full and other people had started placing rubbish around the bin. But putting the beach to one side, there’s a demographic more responsible for littering than others and it’s 16-25-year-old men. In another piece of research conducted by Hubbub in association with Coca-Cola and Burger King,  a third of men aged 16-25 admitted to littering in the past month. Peer pressure and drinking are the key drivers for young men to litter, and that education is seen as one way to bring home the importance of keeping your rubbish to yourself. The older you get the less likely you are to litter, but ageing is hardly a long-term solution. According to Karen, seeing litter pickers in action has a positive effect on littering, and we’ll be able to see exactly how effective this is in our own area around Easter Park as we embark on our litter-picking journey.

Waste is everyone’s problem, and everyone has a role to play in the solution. The little things we can all do will, together, make a big difference.