Is it a bird, is it a plane.........?
No – it’s a Superbin!
The first Superbin in Brighton & Hove will land in Preston Park on Thursday, and be unveiled by the Mayor Dee Simson.
The bin will be the star attraction at the annual Mayor’s Big Tidy Up, when council parks staff and dozens of volunteer litter pickers will be in action, rolling up their sleeves and sprucing up the popular park.
At first glance, the Superbin looks like a normal litter bin, but open the door at the back, and you’ll find a stash of litter picking equipment for use by volunteers.
The bin has been installed as part of the council’s Tidy Up Team project. Trained volunteers will be given a code to the bin store, where equipment including litter pickers, gloves and bags are kept, make litter picking events easy to arrange.
The council launched the Tidy Up Team last year in a bid to encourage local people to help keep their parks and green spaces tidy by taking part in, and organising litter picking events. The scheme is co-ordinated by Cityparks staff and supported by Cityclean and local community groups.
“The response has been better than we ever hoped with hundreds of local people coming forward to offer their help, and keen to organise and run their own community events,” said Park Ranger Garry Meyer.
The council runs monthly training courses for volunteers to become Tidy Up team members, so they can safely collect litter in their local parks and green spaces.
As a result, litter picking events are now taking place regularly across the city, run totally by volunteers.
Councillor Gill Mitchell, chair of the environment committee said: “It’s fantastic that so many residents are coming forward to sign up to the Tidy Up Team projects and help keep our city’s parks and open spaces looking lovely all year round.
“I’m looking forward to seeing our first city Superbin, which I hope will be a welcome addition to the park and its team of hard working volunteers.”
The new Superbin is unveiled at the Mayor’s Big Tidy up, on August 9 from 11am to 2pm. The bin will enable trained Preston Park Tidy Up Team volunteers to arrange events at short notice without waiting for equipment to be dropped off and picked up.
The event will also see the launch of the council’s BIG Tidy Up scheme and information pack, which will enable community groups, schools and businesses to organise their own litter pick events.