Description
Our main Pick & Play and Pick & Play Summer Tour events make a huge difference. Over several years many hundreds of participants have cleared the Peak District National Park of an absolutely massive amount of rubbish. It is humbling and yet hugely inspiring that so many people from near and far care so much about this very special place.
But, the park has an area of 555 square miles and over 13 million visitors a year. That is a lot of ground to cover and, while the majority of visitors are clearly passionate about keeping the park pristine, even if only a small number of the visitors leave some litter, that soon becomes an overwhelming problem. The long term answer is really to recruit a team of litter collectors who can help to tackle the problem. We are keen that you join that team!
We have put together a litter collection loan kit (and may add more as the scheme develops) and want to ask visitors to the park to help collect a bag of rubbish during their visit. Simple really – if every body could, for example, collect just 20 items of litter we’d soon made a big impact on the litter problem. We reckon that would only take a short amount of time and it could be combined with any other activities you want to undertake – grab some rubbish at the crag or as you stroll around one of the villages. It’s all about strength in numbers.
Our equipment is free to use and you can either collect it from us or we’ll do our best to drop it off for you. It couldn’t be simpler and yet this isn’t just about clearing rubbish – try and share your efforts with others and spread the word via social media. This is as much about education and highlighting the problem.
How it works
It couldn’t be simpler really. If you are heading to the Peak District National Park and can spare a bit of litter collecting time (any length of time is better than nothing), just get in touch and we’ll arrange to get one of our litter collection kits to you.
The kit contains litter grabbers, gloves and even a selfie board so you can hopefully take a few snaps of your achievements. There will be a stock of plastic litter collection bags in there too, but we do ask participants to take their bag of rubbish home with them (or pop it in a public bin).
Once you’ve finished we’ll arrange to get the equipment back. That’s it. A fantastic example of collective activism that can really make an impact. We can all be part of making a difference!
FAQ's
Who can participate?
Anyone! We have welcomed teams made up of friends, families, corporate groups or individuals. We love you all equally. Obviously this is a self led activity and so you are responsible for managing your safety and, for groups with children, the safety of minors.
How safe is the activity?
If you are using the litter grabbers, wearing gloves and looking at where you are walking, this is a safe activity. Not risk free, but safety can be well managed.
You need to be careful what you are picking up (you are likely to come across needles, glass, barbed wire, sharp metal and a host of other nasties) and parents will need to be managing children effectively.
You will also need to be careful you aren’t walking anywhere that will cause harm (such as avoiding difficult terrain, staying away from crag edges or be cautious near water. It is also important that you are only collecting litter in places where access is permitted.
There is also a small risk posed by the equipment itself. Please be careful when wielding a litter grabber as they are pointy and sharp edged.
Lastly, the weather conditions in the Peak District can be challenging and change quickly. Please come well prepared for the conditions.
