Young volunteers get to work in estate's big clean-up

The community-minded children joined in the day's work on the Trees estate.

They concentrated on picking up litter from the Laburnum Grove playing area as well as watching the town council's Town Force team wipe out graffiti and meeting firefighters as they conducted free home safety checks.

About 100 people took part in the clean up.

Their efforts stretched from Laburnum Grove to Durban Road and Ash Grove and across to the Aldingbourne Rife. Clearing the rife alone filled a skip with rubbish.

Organised by Arun District Council, street scene co-ordinator Dan Cox said: 'There was a big visible presence on the estate all day. We picked up the occasional shopping trolley, pallets and pieces of broken fencing.

'But it was mainly about clearing up everyday litter which had accumulated in areas where it should not have done.'

The day also featured woodstaining around the estate's basketball court, which attracted further groups of children to take part, and ended in a game of football at Laburnum Grove.

Cllr Paul Wotherspoon, in charge of Arun's environment services, said: 'We will continue to target litter, graffiti, dog fouling, fly tipping and other issues that have an impact on the local environment across the whole district.'