Listening to those at the forefront of tackling litter in our communities

As part of our commitment to tackle litter and waste we welcomed representatives from active community groups and local authorities to our first in person Community Reference Group meeting on 7 September, following an online session last month.

The Community Reference Group has been established to support our work to deliver the 2023/24 Action Plan which underpins Scotland’s Litter and Flytipping Strategy, launched earlier this year.

The attendees brought a diverse range of enthusiasm, insight and expertise to the session which explored the creation of a national online hub which serve as a resource to help individuals, groups and businesses who wish to know more about litter and how to tackle it. The group members discussed the topics and resources that could be made available via the hub, and started to develop a list of existing resources that could be included to ensure it provides the support needed by others across Scotland.

Paul Wallace, our Campaigns and Social Innovation Manager, said: “As part of the Year 1 Action Plan we’re leading on a number of actions that will better engage and empower communities - through the creation of an online litter hub and a new litter education programme, as well as developing and testing innovative interventions to tackle littering behaviours.

“Across the country there are a fantastic range of community representatives working to address the litter emergency. Listening to those who are tirelessly working to make their communities cleaner and greener is key to ensuring that the online hub and education programme are fit for purpose and have the impact we hope they can.”

We also held an online session with 19 of Scotland’s local authorities on 6 September to get their input to the development of the hub.

In addition to our support of the Community Reference Group we also coordinate the Data Management Group.

The climate, nature and litter emergencies are all interlinked; with unsustainable consumption at the heart of all three. We are committed to collaborating with partners to drive implementation of the Strategy Action plan in an effort to make Scotland clean, green and sustainable. 

Find out more about our work to tackle litter and waste.