Volunteer litter pick at Littlestone Beach, New Romney

A community litter pick on 31st August on Littlestone Beach has marked the conclusion of 18 months work by local councillor Val Loseby to get local residents support on keeping the beach maintained. Despite having willing community volunteers to litter pick the beach on a regular basis, Shepway Council had refused to give them the support needed - like picking up the collected litter bags at the end of the day.

It took New Romney Coast Councillor Loseby 18 months to secure agreement from Shepway Council to give community spirited residents of Littlestone, Tom and Chris Ryan, permission to litter pick on a regular basis on Littlestone Beach. Having now done so, there have been offers from several other people to help keep the beach clean.

On Tuesday 31st August, Mark Connorton, from Shepway Volunteer Centre (based at the United Reform Church, Castle Hill Ave, Folkestone) brought a group of around 10 volunteers down to Littlestone Beach for the morning to give the beach a big clean up.

Lib Dem Councillor for New Romney Coast, Val Loseby, said:

"Thanks to the efforts of local residents Tom and Chris Ryan, Littlestone Beach is now one of the cleanest beaches on this stretch of the coast. It's not just me saying that: local residents have remarked on how much cleaner and nicer the beach is since Tom and Chris started to pick up the litter on a regular basis.

"The litter picking morning by the Shepway Volunteer Centre is a tremendous gesture and we would like to thank Mark and all the volunteers for helping out.

"It's a shame it took so long for Shepway to agree to give the support needed to willing volunteers to keep the beach clean. By making it easier for the community to get involved in their area, we could achieve much more, much more quickly."