23 March 2006
Schools and the local community have shown their wholesale support for the forthcoming Heads of the Valleys Spring Clean which gets underway on 1st April, by organising a number of clean-up events throughout the County Borough of Blaenau Gwent.
Volunteers from schools and community groups will be demonstrating their love for the valleys by taking part in a mass clean-up of their local areas.
A variety of events are planned including: volunteers from the Thomas Richards Centre removing rubbish from the river with hooks and ropes; Friends of Parc Nant-y-Waun holding a litter-pick for all age groups followed by a BBQ and pupils from Nantyglo Comprehensive school’s Eco-Committee joining forces with locals to raise awareness of the litter issue.
In addition to the local community pledging their support, Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council are fully backing the campaign, with Local councillors cleaning up in their individual wards and staff from council offices giving up their lunchbreak to clean the areas around their place of work.
Activities will be launched in Blaenau Gwent on Monday 3rd April when Council staff will join forces with Keep Wales Tidy to clean up the area adjacent to the Civic Centre in Ebbw Vale. The Council leader and Chief Executive will join volunteers at 10.30am to give the area a good old spring clean.
Councillor Hedley McCarthy, Executive Member for Neighbourhood Services – Street Scene, said:
“This Spring Clean, which is taking place across the whole of the Heads of the Valleys area, fits in perfectly with our local campaign to clean up the borough.
“I would encourage all members of the community to do their bit for the campaign, as we all have a responsibility to ensure that our local environment is a clean and safe one, that we can all be proud of.”
To further encourage community participation, Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council has pledged to pay £5.00 for every 10 bags filled. This money will go to a charitable donation of the participants’ choice.
To assist groups, Keep Wales Tidy has produced free clean-up kits available to anyone taking part. The kits, sponsored by the Heads of the Valleys Programme, include guidance notes on how to organise a fun, safe clean-up event, publicity materials and tabards to keep participants clean and dry. Blaenau Gwent Council has also pledged support to the campaign by providing litter bags, gloves and litter collection to those taking part.
There are limited kits available, so to register for your free clean-up kit, simply contact Keep Wales Tidy on 029 2025 6767, email: hov@keepwalestidy.org or visit the website: http://www.keepwalestidy.org/
