Police and Young People Team Up

Officers teamed up with a group of young people and local agencies last week in a fantastic effort to clean up areas of the community in St Thomas.

Fifteen members of Momentum Youth Group and PCSO Wendy Robinson led the way for a day of litter picking, gardening and all round enjoyment.

The group of young people, aged between 13 and 17, gave up a day of their time to participate in two separate clean up operations in the area.

The first focused on two flower beds in Peel Place and Sackville Street which had become a dumping ground for rubbish. The combined efforts of those involved restored the area to how it should be with the addition of new flowers and bulbs.

The second was a battle to see who could collect the most rubbish in a litter pick in Somerstown. This included the involvement of the St Thomas Safer Neighbourhoods Team who assisted the group’s efforts, Clean City Services team who provided equipment for the day, and popular store Wilkinson’s, who generously donated a gift voucher, paying for tools and plants used on the day.

A grand total of twelve bags of rubbish were collected by the end of the day, and as a result the area has noticeably improved, to the delight of local residents.

Sergeant Paul Baker of St Thomas Safer Neighbourhoods Team said: “It is really good to see young people giving up their precious free time to improve the local community for all that live, work and play in it. The efforts of the young people will be evident for all to see for months to come. I think this is an admirable example of people coming together to improve the overall quality of life in the neighbourhood.”