A lovelier beauty spot
A major clean-up at a beauty spot on the edge of a West Norfolk town has proved a great success.
A major clean-up at a beauty spot on the edge of a West Norfolk town has proved a great success.
Fifteen large black bin bags were filled with rubbish, and used drug needles were disposed of safely, in the swoop on a rural pathway that follows the route of the old railway line at Swaffham.
Items removed from the attractive walk that leads deep into some of Breckland's most beautiful countryside included broken sewing machines, lavatory seats, smashed radios and other electrical equipment.
The purge also removed piles of old clothes, a large canvas holdall, empty food containers, supermarket trolleys, rusty remains of old bicycles and scores of plastic bags bursting with refuse.
The event, organised by police community support officer Sarah Brighten, targeted an area beneath an old railway bridge at West Acre Road and near Bears Lane.
After discussing the problem with county youth worker Sally Palmer, they enlisted the help of a group of youngsters, who entitled the operation SCUMBY - Swaffham Clean-Up Mission by Youths.
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They were joined by young people from the town's Oasis Centre evangelical church and Hamond's High School students and the event was sponsored by the local McDonald's.
PCSO Brighten said: "The area has been transformed from an unattractive, grotty, dumping ground used by people who couldn't care less about the environment to an attractive and appealing place. Within a few hours, it became part of an attractive walk in an idyllic part of town."
She had a special word of thanks for Amanda Hazell, temporary restaurant manager at the town's McDonald's, and their staff, saying: "They were one of the crucial elements in the success of this venture."
Now PCSO Brighten is planning a blitz on other town rubbish blackspots.