Friends of Sweyne Park are holding a Litter Pick on Saturday 3rd March, 9am ? 11am
Meet in the car park on Downhall Park Way
Litter pickers and bags will be available but it is advisable that you bring your own gloves and wear suitable footwear and clothing.
For more information please contact footprints.sweynepark@hotmail.co.uk or ring Heather Meggison on 01702_318057.
Thanks to FOSP for doing this. I was in the park last week and the amount of rubbish by the pond was awful, plus being a resident of Temple Way the rubbish along Priory Chase is a disgrace. It all leads back to one place; Asda.. I’m not suggesting that life would be better without Asda, but shouldn’t they be accountable in some way for the amount of rubbish which is generated? the main source of the problem is children, mainly teenagers, buying food and drink they don’t really want and either dumping it (Asda bag and all) in the road, skate park, football pitches, park or the roads and footpaths.
Admin, can some dialogue be opened with Asda by the parish council? Perhaps some suggestions could be put forward to how they could help alleviate this problem.
Blaming ASDA is like blaming Ford for speeding motorists. Only when our local yoofs are taught respect for others and their environment will the situation improve. I’m not holding my breath ………
Kris, litter is a District issue , rather than parish council. District Council officers are in dialogue with Asda, having Priory Chase unadopted for so long has made things more difficult.
Rayleigh Resident, it’s a much longer battle educating parents to educate their children, this is an issue that needs to be dealt with quickly. Forced education might be the way forward, don’t allow members of large gangs of teenagers to purchase anything from the store might be a suggestion? Something needs to be done, and Asda have a responsibility to the community that they form a part of. With respect, although I can understand your frustration, your analogy is a tenuous one and just reads as flippant.
Admin, is this seen as an important issue to the parish council?
So – just how in practice would this work Kris ? Just how would you expect ASDA et al to police it. One teen goes in and buys “stuff” for his mates hiding around the corner, maybe ASDA Wardens patrolling the streets ?
Stop teenagers full-stop then, I have a 13 year old son so this would affect me also, i.e. he is often asked to pop over for a pint of milk, etc. We live very close by you see. Our concern is not how Asda help to tackle this issue, hence why it is just a suggestion, but they do have the power/finance/responsibility to help and that is the key. Equal to this, litter bins (RDC’s responsibility) along Priory chase and into Sweyne Park would be helpful. But to sit idly by will not alleviate the problem, it needs to be tackled, while we’re at it we can educate all children on the importance of not littering, but all I’m suggesting is, let’s not run the risk of drowning in a sea of plastic bags before we can achieve this!!
Kris – I think we are in violent agreement that there is a problem !. As long as teens think it’s OK to behave in an anti-social way then nothing will change. Probably 95% of them are OK but the other 5% really need sorting out pronto. The big issue is just how !
Kris, RR, I brought up the subject of anti-social behaviour by youngsters and how the parents were to blame some years ago and got knocked back big time. I still have the same view and that is why I moved away from Rayleigh. I am not saying this does not happen in most towns but where I have moved, it does not happen. Rayleigh is a commuter town and a proportion of adults work in London. I have always found a percentage of these people come home throw their offspring a tenner and tell them to go out and enjoy themselves, in fact I know people who do this. This is not to say all Rayleigh residents act in the same way but a proportion do and these kids do get out of hand. Is it their fault that they do not know how to conduct themselves, no, it is the parents and therein lies the problem but how do you censure the parents?
I am with Kris on this why shouldn’t Asda help? MacDonald’s run litter patrols to collect rubbish their customers generate! People on the ground at the council are fully aware of source of litter comes from. Prior to their collapse Fountain Group who managed the parks ran daily little patrols but the council do not have personnel to do this. First litter, then graffiti, it’s a downward spiral and degeneration of the whole area.
Admin, looking at recent posts it’s clear that we have a problem with ASB – can you raise at the RDC mtg ?