Since 2016, volunteers from the Norwich Road Estate Residents Association (NRERA) have been tackling litter in the community. Over the past 11 years, the group has collected more than 7.5 tonnes of rubbish, the weight of a lorry, with an average of 165 bags per year.
Litter picks take place on the first Saturday of each month, with additional efforts during peak times. In January and February alone, 25 to 32 bags were collected. The work doesn’t stop at litter picking—volunteers also remove graffiti, clear weeds and maintain public spaces like the milestone on Norwich Road. The litter picks have even extended up the Mundford Road to the railway bridge and Glebe Close.
Mac and Sue Macdonald joined forces with the late Colin Armes to set up the group in 2014. Mac said, “I was disappointed to see so much rubbish where I lived, and took on a bit of a doorstep mentality in the hope that it might inspire neighbours to join in. Once the litter picking became a thing, I just kept asking people to come along. Even when only two or three people turned up, the effort helped encourage others to join. It’s great for your wellbeing – I’ve met people on the estate that I wouldn’t have talked to otherwise.” Mac says the litter pick isn’t a big commitment at just one hour a month and using social media has created a community of supporters.
The initiative has since grown, with regular support from volunteers across Thetford. They also work in conjunction with members of Cloverfields and Willows Residents Association (CAWRA) to keep the area along both sides of the Norwich Road tidy, including the upkeep of the milestone. The litter pick is now an agenda item during the regular NRERA meetings.
This has led to links to the schools being developed and community threads coming together to create positive action.
Rubbish frequently comes from the main Norwich Road, with unusual finds including traffic cones, pushchairs, broken wheelbarrows, and a child’s ride-on tractor dumped in a hedge. Fly-tipping hotspots, such as Joe Blunts Lane, have been a persistent challenge. When possible, waste is taken to the local dump for free disposal.
Encouraging wider participation has been key to NRERA’s success. The group welcomes Duke of Edinburgh Award participants, particularly from Thetford Academy, who are designated volunteers under the supervision of Bea. The D of E team can be found collecting rubbish across the main routes through the town.
Talks at Admirals Academy and Drake Primary help educate children on the impact of littering, and older residents enjoy seeing younger people getting involved.
NRERA also organises themed clean-ups for events like Christmas, Easter, and is also taking part in the Great British Spring Clean, a national event running from 21st March to 6th April.
Since 2016, the Great British Spring Clean has become the nation’s biggest mass-action environmental campaign, empowering the nation to pick up more than four million bags of harmful rubbish from streets, parks and beaches.
In research conducted by Keep Britain Tidy, the charity behind the campaign, and YouGov, it was revealed that three quarters of people in the East of England say that seeing litter makes them less proud of where they live. Over a quarter even said they ‘called out’ litterers or told others not to do it – that’s more than any other region!
Keep Britain Tidy’s Chief Executive, Allison Ogden-Newton OBE, said, “We know there’s a problem, but we also know that people-power is part of the solution. Each year, the Great British Spring Clean’s fantastic and dedicated ‘litter heroes’ take positive action to tackle litter and show they love where they live.”
The Thetford Great British Spring Clean takes part on Friday 21st to Sunday 23rd March. For more information contact Thetford town Council.
For more information on NRERA litter picks contact: nrrathetford@gmail.com
