A multi-agency taskforce is on course to remove a record haul of unwanted and abandoned cars from Thetford's streets as part of a scheme to tidy up the town.

A multi-agency taskforce is on course to remove a record haul of unwanted and abandoned cars from Thetford's streets as part of a scheme to tidy up the town.

The third Operation Civic Pride swung into full life today with officials targeting notorious litter and fly tipping hotspots and illegal vehicles.

The two-day event, which involves partners from the police, fire service, town and district councils, housing associations, local residents' and campaign groups, has this year focused on getting more school children and migrant workers to help clean up their community.

The successful operation, which is set to be rolled out across other towns in Breckland, reported its highest level of public interest yesterday, with more than 40 reports of untaxed cars and 15 people making use of a scrap vehicle amnesty.

Areas around the Anchor Hotel, bus station, and wooded areas off Norwich Road, St John's Way, and the Redcastle Estate, were all purged of litter in the campaign, which will continue at the town centre, Charles Burrell High School ,and Trafalgar Woods, on the Cloverfields Estate. For the first time, the DVLA took part in Operation Civic Pride, which detected 16 untaxed vehicles in the town and helped identify about 10 abandoned cars.

Angela Masterson, from Breckland Council's environmental health team, said the event was going “really well.”

“There are some areas, which we have addressed in previous operations that have remained clear of rubbish, but there are some perennial problems where private owners and landlords feel it is not their responsibility.”

“We have had big interest from different sections of the public and people are genuinely showing pride in where they live. The highest number of amnesty cars shows that people are making decisions to dispose of them correctly,” she said.