Love the streets you live in
On top of the fine design and careful maintenance of Kensington and
Chelsea's streetscape, the Council recognises that litter-free streets,
effective rubbish collection and good recycling services are an equal and
essential part of its vision for a better city life.
But residents already benefit from twice-weekly kerbside rubbish
collections. Recycling is easier than ever. So what will boost recycling rates
or make residents reduce the amount of rubbish they use? How can people be
persuaded to stop leaving their rubbish on the streets at the wrong time?
The answer, the Council believes, is to encourage residents to play their
part in making the streets safe and clean for everyone to enjoy. Its new
campaign is telling residents: love the streets you live in.
The campaign
Launched in September, the campaign aims to reduce the amount of rubbish left
in the wrong place or at the wrong time by 20 per cent, and to increase
recycling rates by 100 tonnes per month, by spring 2005.
Beyond these measures though, the Council wants its 'love the streets'
message to promote civic pride - to make residents feel they are making a
contribution to the local community by, for example, recycling more.
The practicalities
New signs
The campaign's first move has been to target residents leaving rubbish out
for collection at the wrong time. As well as causing obstacles for people using
pavements, this bad habit helps the local rat population to prosper, and creates
a risk to public health.
The Council's approach to solving the problem has been a combination of
carrot and stick. It has introduced new signs. Aimed at people who are unsure
which days their rubbish is collected, the signs leave residents in no doubt
about the time of their rubbish collections.
Piloted in Earl's Court, the initiative operates hand-in-hand with bright red
warning notices used to label rubbish left on the street at the wrong time.
These tell residents they risk a fine for littering.
Orange sacks
Recycling rates in the borough are heading in the right direction, up from 9 per
cent in 2003 to 16.5 per cent this year. But the Council is keen to build on the
good work.
The Council's answer has already been to make recycling easy. The jewel in
the crown is its twice-weekly kerbside collections of recycling. But orange
recycling sacks are the really easy way for residents to bag their recycling.
Since September, the number of places selling the orange recycling sacks at
cost price has grown to 17. Sacks are now available to residents in sports
centres, libraries and council offices throughout the borough. Stocked in
distinctive stands carrying the 'love the streets' message, this means the sacks
are for sale outside office hours.
The next step is to persuade local retail outlets to stock the orange sacks.
The Council wants local supermarkets to sell them alongside black bin bags and
will offer retailers an excellent deal.
To find out more email rbkcdirect@rbkc.gov.uk.
Over to you
The Council wants to talk to different sections of the community to find out
how it can make recycling more attractive, and to encourage residents to love
the streets they live in.
To find out more email rbkcdirect@rbkc.gov.uk.
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