Pro basketball player Mike Tuck unveils Council's new "Baskebin"

The "Basketbin" is a large basket ball hoop and stand attached to a bin. People can play a game of basketball with their rubbish, whilst reducing litter in our area.

The bin is currently located near Halifax Academy and if it proves popular, it will tour around litter hot spots in the Park Ward.

6ft 7" Sheffield Sharks Captain Mike Tuck was the first person to slam dunk their rubbish into the bin. Students were then invited to get involved and practice their shooting skills.

Mr Tuck has played over 200 league games with Sheffield Sharks. During his career with the club he has scored over 3000 points and won four championships.

"It's a great idea to put it in an area near schools, giving the kids somewhere to shoot their rubbish. I'm always practising my shot by throwing items into bins and this is a great way to get kids engaged with caring for the environment," said Mr Tuck.

The Mayor of Calderdale, Coun Dot Foster also attended the event.

"It's no good just endlessly lecturing people to pick up their litter, so it's fantastic to incorporate a bit of fun into cleaning up the area. Because it's so visible, rubbish can really bring down an area so hopefully this will help brighten up the place," said Coun Foster.

The Basketbin was created by local artist Frank Darnley, who also made the iconic metal ram sculpture at Dean Clough.

"It was a very nice project to do and hopefully it will just make people stop and think before they chuck their rubbish on the ground," said Mr Darnley.

The bin is part of the wider 'Don't Muck About' campaign, which was launched the Council and Community Foundation for Calderdale. It highlights the importance of disposing of litter properly and that littering, fly-tipping, dog fouling and graffiti will not be tolerated.

Chief Executive Officer for the Community Foundation for Calderdale Steve Duncan said: "It's great to see that something so engaging for young people and residents is being done to help the environment."

"It's an exciting first step to getting young people interested in the environment. They are the ones that are going to get the climate back to what it needs to be. On my drive here I saw so much rubbish, something really needs to be done about it," said DL Chris Harris.

Coun Susan Press, Calderdale Council’s Cabinet Member for Public Services and Communities, said: “The Basketbin is a great, enterprising way to encourage more people to keep our streets litter-free. Although it’s fun and we hope people enjoy using the bin, there’s a serious message behind it – dropping litter harms our environment, blights our communities and is a crime. Tackling this issue is part of our continued work to address the climate emergency.

“Keeping Calderdale clean and tidy costs around £1.6 million a year. We’re excited to launch the Basketbin to get more people involved in reducing litter, particularly young people to help them start good lifelong habits.”