A whole heap of rubbish cleared by Clean for Queen volunteers

The litter pick, organised by Bedford Borough Council, saw a wide variety of rubbish and junk cleared from the River Great Ouse and the surrounding area.

Members of the Viking Kayak Club and Bedford Sub Aqua Club managed to retrieve a number of items from the river, including trolleys, bikes, barriers, umbrellas, a skateboard and a shovel.

Bedford Mayor Dave Hodgson said: “This initiative was embraced by people across Bedford Borough, and I would like to thank everyone who took part. We hope this will provide people with even more incentive to continue to keep our Borough litter free.”

Despite the cold weather, more than 40 volunteers of all ages, including members of the Sant Nirankari Mission, collected 50 sacks of litter in just two hours.

The event on Saturday (March 5), supported by the Environment Agency, coincided with community litter picks in Putnoe, Little Staughton, Staploe, Oakley and the Landsdowne Road area in Bedford.

Clean for The Queen is a national campaign to mark her 90th birthday. It was launched by Country Life magazine and Keep Britain Tidy in a bid to rally volunteers across the country to clean up their local areas.