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By Simon Henig

Community-minded volunteers across County Durham will be pulling out all the stops over the next couple of months to keep our local area looking neat and tidy.

It’s all part of the Big Spring Clean which kicks off on Sunday and runs until the end of March.

The event, which originated in Durham 11 years ago, is now backed nationally by Keep Britain Tidy and aims to encourage people around the country to take pride in their community by organising a litter pick or similar event.

Here in County Durham, it’s coordinated by LitterFree Durham and supported by Durham County Council’s Civic Pride team, who help schools, community groups and other organisations to arrange events in their area.

Last year’s event saw 187 litter picks take place around the county, with 2,215 volunteers collecting more than 3,300 bags of rubbish between them.

Keeping the county looking its best is one of the county council’s key priorities. Everybody wants to live in a place that is clean, tidy and welcoming. It’s also important that we create the best possible impression for those visiting or travelling through the county.

That’s why the county council has a large team of clean and green staff who work very hard to look after our area all-year round, carrying out routine maintenance such as grass-cutting, weed-spraying, looking after grass verges and roundabouts and taking care of trees and shrubs.

They’re also responsible for street cleaning, including car parks, markets and public toilets, as well as clearing graffiti, litter and dog waste.

This work is supported by that of our neighbourhood wardens who work tirelessly in dealing with issues such as litter, fly tipping, dog fouling and untidy yards and gardens. Just yesterday, councillors further demonstrated their commitment to keeping our county looking its best by agreeing funding for 11 additional wardens as part of our budget for the coming financial year.

We remain dedicated to keeping our county clean and green and investing in the necessary resources to do that but anything that our communities can do to help is always a huge bonus to our efforts.

For more information about how to get involved in the Big Spring Clean, visit www.durham.gov.uk/bigspringclean.gov.uk