Primary school children look to clean up town thanks to £500 grant for litter picking equipment

Children from Our Lady of the Rosary Catholic Primary School can continue to help keep their community litter free after receiving a £500 grant to purchase litter picking equipment.

The money from housing association Believe Housing has been used to purchase equipment for 10 children, including high visibility jackets, gloves, bags and Griptor litter pickers.

Children at the Peterlee school already carryout regular litter picks around their school as well as the East Durham coast.

The litter picks are led by Science lead and Year 2 teacher Susan Jones and teaching assistant Marguerite Elrick.

Mrs Jones said: “Peterlee has a lot of shops, schools and people walking and driving through, so keeping Peterlee tidy is important.

"We will work closely with Peterlee White Watch who have stressed their interest in supporting us with community projects that care for the local environment.  “We already go to Crimdon Beach to carry out beach cleans twice a year, but the children are keen to do the same on their doorstep.

"We will develop community links by involving parents, grandparents and carers in this project and run an after-school club using this equipment purchased to tidy the school grounds."

Following the windfall the pupils can't wait to get started with their new equipment.

Year 2 pupil Poppie Manuel, 7, said: “I always see litter around Peterlee, so I think we will be really busy with our litter-pickers.”

Classmate Zendy Warambwa, 7, said: "I went to Crimdon Beach with my Mam at the weekend so I could pick up litter because I don’t want it to go in the sea and hurt the animals.

"I can’t wait to do it again.”

Wilson Tough, 7, added: “I got a litter-picker for my birthday and I picked up litter where I live. My brother held the bag for me so I could put the rubbish in it.”

Believe Housing commission the grants to support projects that "make a real difference to people’s lives and well-being". Our Lady of the Rosary Catholic Primary School is part of the Bishop Chadwick Catholic Education Trust.