It’s been a week of litter picking and clear ups in our “Clean for the Queen” campaign, cleaning and brightening up our City as part of the Queen’s 90^th birthday celebrations.  Local groups of residents, schools, and organisations, supported by the City Council and the Duckworth Trust, attacked some notoriously bad areas for litter and cleaned them up.  It was good to have public activity like this, demonstrating the damage done through pollution of our environment and by demeaning the visual amenity.  I hope our volunteers have made it abundantly obvious that it is unacceptable to just toss unwanted items on the ground or in bushes.

All sorts of things were found including the odd worn out tyre, loads of plastic, cans and bottles by the hundred and a myriad of other spent materials just dropped or cast into the undergrowth. I wonder why, in this enlightened country of ours, that some people think it’s ok to just discard rubbish on our streets, in our parks and on our green spaces.  Some say there are no bins!!  In reality, the City Council empties approximately 220 bins daily in the city centre.  We also empty 420 other litter bins around Worcester, which equals 920 collections per week.  That’s not including the servicing of 237 dog bins, adding up to another 500 collections a week!  However, if there is no convenient bin close by then why, I ask, don’t they pocket their rubbish until they pass one or take it home with them?

I went to a city in Germany recently and surprisingly there were few litter bins, but there was no litter on the streets and no graffiti. I asked how this was achieved and was told that the people took pride in the place where they lived and in their environment and thought it unacceptable to discard litter in public places and spaces.  Unfortunately we have a lot to learn!

On a lighter and much more enjoyable note, The Royal Grammar School hosted the Worcester Competitive Arts Festival and the talent demonstrated by our young people was astounding. It’s difficult to even try to pick out the best; I did say to one judge that I wouldn’t have her job for all the tea in China!  However I must comment on the Vocal Solo (12 years and under) as these young singers changed from nervous children to competent performers immediately when their music began.  They just “adopted and lived” the role and they were great!