31 Jul 2023
A seven-year-old eco-warrior is calling on the district council and its contractors to do their job and clean up the streets where she lives.
Grace Gaskin, a pupil at Garden Fields School, has been collecting rubbish in the New Greens area for almost two months, and has recruited an army of fellow waste collectors to help her cause.
She said: “It was torture to see all the litter on the ground so I asked my dad if he would buy me a litter picker.
“People who dump rubbish need to think about the animals that may be hurt on broken glass or ripped cans and the children who like to play on the grass – they may be hurt and have to go to hospital.”
During the course of their clear-up the Saturday Pickers have found nails, razors, a rusty circular saw blade, a rake head, a barbecue grill and three tanks of gas!
Her dad Damian explained their tactics: “We have made a map and keep a log of what roads we have done and when.
“In the run up to a Saturday morning we look at the map and see what areas have never been touched or we know really needs attention.
“For instance outside the shops on High Oaks a team of eight volunteers took two hours to pick up every vape, can, can ring, cigarette end, ketchup sachet, cable tie, cigarette packet, coffee cup and, of course, the used syringes.
“We have our regular school route on Mondays and a regular route on Sunday on our way to church.”
The first volunteer recruit stopped her car when she saw Grace and her dad litter picking and asked if she could join them.
Other people saw them on the Saturday Pickers Facebook page or found out through the congregation at Christ Church.
“We have gone from Grace and myself to 13 volunteers in six weeks, and of course, Biscuit the dog,” Damian said.
To ensure health and safety, all the children who help Grace are accompanied by their parents. They are equipped with litter pickers and instructed that they must use these for any litter and not touch anything by hand.
“Even with the litter pickers they are not permitted to touch broken glass or sharp-shredded aluminium cans – and certainly not the syringes – and to not walk on the raised flower beds where we have found the used needles.”
After picking up five bags of waste around High Oaks shops, Grace’s dad tweeted a message to SADC and Veolia’s chief executive Gavin Graveson urging them to empty and repair the overflowing bins in the area, as these were probably contributing to the dumping of rubbish in the vicinity.
He said: “Veolia – your ads are glossy, the reality where we live is very different.
“Why is our part of St Albans treated like this? Is it because it is a council estate? These bins have been like this for months and children volunteer to pick up litter your company ignores.”
Following his tweet, the bins were finally emptied earlier this week, and will apparently be replaced soon. They also removed some fly-tipped bags of concrete which had hardened over time.
Christine Traill, SADC strategic director for community and place delivery, said: “We are fully supportive of Grace’s campaign against litter and fly-tips in New Greens. It is a very community-spirited initiative and she is clearly an impressive young girl.
“Across the district, we work with 11 other community litter pick groups, providing free equipment such as litter pickers, gloves and bags and Veolia schedules a dedicated collection to clear their bags of rubbish.
“We have already talked to Grace’s group, provided some free equipment and ordered replacements for the High Oaks bins which were broken. We thank her for drawing that to our attention.
“Grace’s Saturday litter picks wouldn’t be necessary, of course, if the offenders who blight the area didn’t litter and fly-tip.
“There is simply no excuse to do that – even if a litter bin is full, it is not acceptable to discard rubbish on the street.
“As part of our contract with Veolia, they litter pick and empty bins regularly and any full ones can be reported to them through MyStAlbans.
“It is hugely disappointing, of course, that some people continue to litter and fly-tip despite the actions and campaigns we take to discourage them.
“Our monthly inspections of randomly-selected roads and areas would indicate that what Grace has observed in New Greens is not altogether typical of the district.
“The number of monthly street inspections passing the national test for environmental cleanliness have seen a positive upward trend in recent months. In June, for example, 100% of areas inspected for litter passed and 92% passed for presence of detritus, that is material that tends to collect by the kerbside.
“These high scores would not be possible without the backing of the vast majority of our residents who are as determined as we, Veolia and Grace are to keep our neighbourhoods clean and litter free.”
The Saturday Pickers meet every Saturday morning at 8am in Christ Church car park. Litter pickers are provided or bring your own. Search for Saturday Pickers on Facebook or visit https://www.facebook.com/groups/297162759537290/
