Calderdale Council urges people to play their part in tackling litter

CALDERDALE Council is enlisting the help of schoolchildren to combat litter on the streets.

Rubbish was one of the issues many Courier readers raised when responding to our Love Your Town survey, often saying it was the worst thing about the area’s town centres.

The council says it spends £1.6 million every year trying to keep the borough clean and enforcement officers can issue an £80 fine to people who drop litter on purpose

It ran a contest asking pupils to design anti-litter posters to encourage people to take pride in their community and to bin their rubbish.

Winner of the contest was 11-year-old Angharad Cuthell from St Andrew’s C of E Junior School, Brighouse. Her poster will now be displayed around Calderdale.

Councillor Scott Patient, Calderdale Council’s Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Environment, said: “Litter doesn’t just affect us today, but for generations to come, due to its harmful long-term impacts on our distinctive environment. We declared a climate emergency earlier this year, and tackling litter is just one of the things we can all do to address this.”

Councillor Susan Press, Cabinet Member for Public Services and Communities, added that the money currently used clearing litter from the borough could be spent on other vital services if every resident played their part.