EFFORTS to clean up the North Beck will continue this year following litter-picking events held during 2018.

Council and community groups came together to spruce up Postman’s Walk which runs alongside the beck connecting Braithwaite and Guard House with Oakworth Road in the town centre. More than 20 bags of litter were collected.

The events involved the Aire Rivers Trust, Highfield Community Association, Keighley area coordinator’s office, volunteers and Bradford Council cleansing and parks staff. Funding was sought for a full clean-up of the beck and its banking.

The two clean-ups are among several highlighted in a recent report about the work of the area coordinator’s office with community groups and volunteers across the constituency. Local volunteers have been involved in many clean-ups in areas such as Oakworth, Bracken Bank and the town centre.

In Laycock, a clean-up was held in advance of the Millennium Relay Race arriving in the village. Volunteer residents were joined by members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Organisation. Residents told youngsters about the history of the area, and agreed to work together on future events.

Keighley area coordinator’s staff joined the Haworth Village Warden to tackle dog fouling in Haworth, Cross Roads and Stanbury. New signs were erected and stickers attached to litter bins, and the Green Dog Walkers Scheme was publicised.

Almost 20 volunteers including all three ward councillors cleaned the area around Bridgehouse Beck in Haworth, including the Ebor Lane Railway Children’s Walk. They gathered 25 bags of waste and weeds along with a toilet and a road cone pulled out of the beck.

The event, organised by Keighley area coordinator’s office and the Aire Rivers Trust, ended with suggestions for future activities, which included dry stone walling, nature walks, dog fouling campaigns and more litter picking.

Keighley Big Local organised clean-ups of three parks in the Keighley East ward. Two residents were given litter pickers to carry out regular clean-ups, and residents suggested supporting a new volleyball team and creating ‘pocket’ allotments.

An extensive fly tipping campaign was run during several months of 2018 in Knowle Park, Highfield, Showfield, Lawkholme, Utley and Beechcliffe. Staff from several council departments came together with ward councillors, volunteer residents, local organisations and schools.