Council officers collected around 70 bags of litter from the temporary campsites used by Gypsies and Travellers on their way to and from Appleby Horse Fair.
South Lakeland District Council set up four temporary stopping places near Sedbergh and Kirkby Lonsdale for fair-goers ahead of this year’s event, which was postponed from June to August due to COVID-19 restrictions.
As well as supplying bins and skips at each location, council officers also built on the goodwill that exists between the council and the Gypsy and Travelling community by making daily visits to all four sites to engage with the fair-goers about litter.
Staff distributed bin bags to help minimise the migration’s impact on the South Lakeland countryside as well as regularly removing the filled sacks.
The partnership approach was hailed a success.
Sue Warner, SLDC’s locality team west leader, said: “Leading up to the fair, the locality team made daily visits to the four areas to give out bin bags to help with the containment of waste. This has helped enormously on the amount of waste left this year.”
Following the closure of the temporary campsites on Friday August 20, council officers and embarked on a major clean-up of the migration route, clearing 60-70 sacks of litter from the temporary campsites and roadside verges with the help of two road-sweeping vehicles.
Sue said: “We collected bottles, cans, Pot Noodles, nappies, carpets and lots and lots of wipes,. We cleared the loop road at Devil’s Bridge, Middleton Common and Scrogg Bank Field, all the way through to Rawthey Bridge. All campfires were cleared and left tidy.”
SLDC worked with partner organisations including the county council, police and neighbouring local authorities to ensure the safe movement of fair-goers through the district on their way to and from Appleby.
Officers from the council will also be taking part in two multi-agency drop-in events today where people can raise any comments, questions and suggestions about the management of this year’s Appleby Horse Fair migration.
These will be held at:
- Kirkby Lonsdale – The Bective Room, Lunesdale Hall, 5pm-6.30pm
- Sedbergh – The Rawthey Room, Sedbergh Police Office (above Sedbergh Information Centre), 72 Main Street, 7pm-8.20pm.
The temporary stopping places organised by SLDC for traditional bowtop caravans and motorised towed caravans on routes through South Lakeland to Appleby were at:
- Devil’s Bridge, Kirkby Lonsdale
- Middleton Common, near Sedbergh
- Rawthey Bridge, Cautley, near Sedbergh
- Scrogg Bank Field, Sedbergh.
Councillor Philip Dixon, SLDC’s portfolio holder for customer and locality services, said: “I would like to commend our hard-working officers for their excellent work before, during and after Appleby Horse Fair. Their efforts are a great example of how they help to keep our district safe, welcoming and enjoyable for everyone, both residents and visitors.
“The council set up these locality teams two years ago as part of our wide-reaching Customer Connect transformation programme. The teams are at the heart of our approach to bring council services closer to our communities and to make them more streamlined.
“Our friendly and approachable locality officers help to make up the public face of the council, and you may well have seen them out and about in their yellow hi-vis vests, often with a litter-picker in hand.
“They are dedicated to supporting our communities to grow and flourish, by harnessing their local knowledge and their love of South Lakeland to make the district the best it can be for everyone, including the Gypsies and Travellers who pass through each year en route to Appleby.”
