Syke Common cleared by community litter pick

Date published: 21 November 2019

A litter pick saw 15 residents clean up the Rochdale area of Syke on Saturday (16 November).

Participants of the litter pick cleaned up objects like tyres, bricks and car registration plates in various parts of Syke and filled a number of bin bags with litter.

Kelly Newbury is a leader of Syke Scouts who took part in the litter pick.

She said: “Local residents want to make sure the area looks nice, because it is a nice area.

"Unfortunately, the Rochdale area has fallen victim to fly tipping and littering.

“There was a lot of industrial waste, but we found a lot of household waste too, and a large amount of the waste was recyclable.”

As a leader of the 40th Rochdale Syke Scouts Group, Kelly encouraged the scouts to take part in the litter pick and hopes to continue to do so in the future.

Cubs from 40th Rochdale got involved too as they have recently been completing their environmental action badge.

Organised by the Rochdale Ramblers, the litter pick is hopefully set to become a regular event in Syke. Kelly says they are aiming to do a litter pick every three months.

The Syke Scouts weren’t the only ones involved. Members of Rochdale Ramblers, Green Volunteers and Syke Community Base all took part in the litter pick and managed to clear Syke Common, parts of Syke Moors and the surrounding areas in just two hours.

Kelly says the area has a strong sense of community through the Syke Community Base and after taking part in her first litter pick last Saturday, she hopes to continue the hard work with the Syke Scouts.

All equipment was provided by Rochdale Borough Council and anyone wishing to do their own community litter pick can order some kit by visiting:

• rochdale.gov.uk/litterpick