A COUNCIL manager took on a litter picking marathon around Trafford yesterday to mark the end of the Great British Spring Clean.

Mark Dale, Trafford Council’s Environmental Improvement Manager, set off from Trafford Town Hall in Stretford at 6am on Friday.

He followed a 26-mile, 10-hour route, picking about 40 bags of litter along the way.

The Messenger caught up with Mark three hours into the route outside Sale Town Hall, where he took the opportunity to issue a rallying call to the residents of Trafford.

He said: “[Littering] is a constant issue, not just in Trafford, but across the country.

“It costs millions and millions of pounds a year to clear litter away and obviously we can use the money for better things.

“So what we would like to see is for people to become responsible and use the bins that are out there.

“If the bins are full, take your litter and put it in your bin at home.”

Messenger Newspapers: Mark outside Sale Town Hall, with children and staff from GripAdventure.Mark outside Sale Town Hall, with children and staff from GripAdventure.

Mark encouraged residents to get involved in Let’s Tidy Trafford Together on Facebook, and also to take advantage of the council’s offer of a free litter picking kit.

“We have 350 plus members who are all engaged and passionate about litter in Trafford”, he said.

“Every day we go on the page, it’s got more and more members.

“We’ve given close to 3000 litter pickers away to residents, who are getting out into their communities and keeping Trafford the beautiful place that it is.”

The marathon marks the end of two weeks of litter picking by council officers and volunteers as part of national charity Keep Britain Tidy’s Great British Spring Clean.

Hundreds of bags of litter have been collected by those involved.

Joining Mark outside Sale Town Hall were about 25 children and staff from GripAdventure, an organisation offering summer activities with a focus on community and responsibility, who were also out litter picking for the morning.