Schools across the Borough are coming together to tackle litter as part of the Clean for the Queen campaign.
The initiative aims to inspire more than a million people across the country to take action and help give their local communities a spring clean ahead of The Queen’s 90th birthday on 21 April.
Children from Simonside Primary and St Mary’s RC Primary both in Jarrow, joined forces as part of a weekend of activities taking place between Friday 4 and Sunday 6 March.
Cllr Richard Porthouse, Mayor of South Tyneside said: “The two schools saw the initiative as a prime opportunity for them to collaborate and do a spring clean around their schools and the surrounding area. Both schools take real pride in their local environment, as do many schools across the Borough. What a perfect way to teach the next generation about litter and the importance of keeping our environment clean.
Children and teachers from Simonside Primary and St Mary’s RC Primary were joined by The Mayor of South Tyneside, Cllr Richard Porthouse and Cllr Tracey Dixon, Lead Member for Area Management and Community Safety for a litter pick around St Mary’s Church on Glasgow Road, Jarrow.
Further litter picks were then conducted by the children around the grounds of each of their schools. South Tyneside Council and South Tyneside Homes helped by providing litter pickers and waste sacks.
Harriet Bland, Head teacher at Simonside Primary School said “We are grateful for the opportunity to bring Simonside and St Mary’s schools together for a good spring clean. Our young ‘environmental volunteers’ are keen to take pride in our local area and ensure that both of the schools’ extensive grounds are litter-free and ready for use by the children in the spring and summer.
“We are really grateful for the Council’s assistance so that we could carry out the clean-up not only around the church but across our extensive school grounds. We hope that this activity teaches our pupils good habits that they can take through life to keep the area clean.”
Marie Graham, Head teacher at St Mary’s RC Primary said: “This is a great opportunity for the pupils at St Mary’s and Simonside Primary Schools to come together and show that we appreciate and respect our area and ensure our school grounds are litter free.
“As a school, we fully appreciate the importance of partnership and working together and were pleased our Mayor Richard Porthouse, Councillor Tracey Dixon and Councillor Faye Cunningham who is a Governor at St Mary’s could join us today and show their continued support and commitment to our community and the efforts of our pupils.”
To find out how you can get involved in a litter pick in your area this weekend go towww.cleanforthequeen.gov.uk