Clean Streets: Tall Ships Race team back drive to get Sunderland looking its best

As Sunderland gets ready to welcome 1.5 million visitors and up to 80 ships in just seven months time, Michelle Daurat backed the Sunderland Echo’s ‘Clean Streets’ campaign.

The campaign calls for a concerted push towards a neat and tidy city.

Sunderland needs to look its best at a time when an international event is on its way, said Michelle. That way, the thousands of visitors who are expected next summer may be tempted to come back.

The Project Director for The Tall Ships Races Sunderland 2018, said: “It goes without saying that the Tall Ships project fully supports any efforts as a city to make a warm welcome and put on a showcase for visitors.

“It is about having a brilliant time and seeing the best of Sunderland and about people coming back again and again.

“We fully support any efforts that we have as a city.”

The campaign also got support from Sunderland City Council Portfolio Holder for City Services, Councillor Michael Mordey.

He said: “Helping to keep our streets clean and litter free is something we all aspire to, and work hard together as a community to achieve.

“We are proud of our neighbourhoods, and our city, and want everyone who visits to share that pride when they see how well we look after where we live.

“The Tall Ships Races Event will help attract many people into our city next year, some of them for the first time, and we want them to arrive and leave with a great impression of Sunderland - as clean, tidy and welcoming place they can’t wait to come back to.”

Just one week ago, the Echo launched its ‘Clean Streets’ campaign and encouraged the people of Wearside to get involved in helping to make Sunderland smarter.

We listened to what many of our readers said in our recent Big City survey, when 66 per cent of readers said they felt cleanliness of our public places is poor or very poor.

We’re calling on everyone who has Sunderland at heart to help make the city a smarter place in which to live, work, study and socialise.

And here’s how you can play your part in the ‘Clean Streets’ campaign:

• Know a litter/rubbish blackspot?

Send us in your pictures – either via our Facebook and Twitter pages or email them to [email protected]

• Businesses, schools, community groups – are you involved in clean-up projects in your communities?

Let us know either through the same channels or call the Echo newsdesk on (0191) 501 7326.