Spring Clean North Lanarkshire

Does litter in North Lanarkshire bug you?  Do you want to do something about it?

This spring, we have teamed up with North Lanarkshire Council to call on local communities, businesses and schools to join a Spring Clean challenge from 21 March - 21 April and help clean up their neighbourhoods.

In 2021, North Lanarkshire Council collected 1,700 tonnes of rubbish from street bins and litter picking, reflecting a larger litter crisis across Scotland. We teamed up with North Lanarkshire Council earlier this year to tackle the problem locally, launching a Roadside Litter Campaign supported by McDonald’s and Costa.

If you feel frustrated about the litter in North Lanarkshire or the places you visit, you can do something about it. Join us and tackle litter by taking part in Spring Clean Scotland, the perfect opportunity to make a difference by picking up litter in your local woods, streets, parks and beyond. Get involved and help make North Lanarkshire cleaner and safer for people and animals.

Every action, however small, makes a difference. Just half an hour of picking up litter and disposing of it safely can help an area look cleaner and feel safer, and evidence shows it also prevents more litter being dropped. Why not organise a litter pick with friends, family, workmates or your wider community? Or find one to join in with on our Clean Up Scotland map.

We know young people feel strongly about caring for the environment and want to do something about the harmful effects of litter in their communities. Your school can get involved too. As part of Spring Clean, there is a Live Lesson open to all schools across the UK. In North Lanarkshire, 15 schools have already signed up to learn about climate change and the action we can take to tackle it.

Barry Fisher, our CEO said, “Across Scotland we have seen a steady increase in the amount of litter over the past decade. While this is a real challenge, we are heartened by the incredible work of litter picking heroes up and down the country.

“Our communities already play a vital role in taking action to tackle litter. In North Lanarkshire we have seen lots of people giving up their time to clean up their local areas despite the challenges of the last two years – we are delighted to be working with the Council to tackle this issue. We would love as many people as possible to join in and give North Lanarkshire a spring clean this March and April.

“For those that wish to take further action, The Scottish Government is currently consulting on a revised National Litter and Flytipping Strategy and you can still respond until the end of March and have #YourSayOnLitter.”

Councillor Michael McPake, Convener of the Environment and Transportation Committee, said, “Most people take a pride in their local community and want to keep it clean, so it is disappointing to see litter creating a mess on our streets. The council’s teams are out every day collecting litter and I know many residents and community groups who organise regular litter picks. It makes a real difference and I would encourage as many people as possible to join Keep Scotland Beautiful’s Spring Clean campaign and help keep North Lanarkshire a clean and attractive place to live, learn, work, invest and visit.”

North Lanarkshire Council has pledged support by offering advice, equipment and uplifts. Inspired to take positive action? Learn more and sign up to join in.