New scheme picked up to address litter eyesore

West Berkshire Council said this week that it was considering installing gateways in fencing near main roads to allow easier access to clean up areas such as the Sandleford Link, highlighted this week by several people as an eyesore.
The council was responding to criticism, including from forum uses on newburytoday.co.uk, about the poor impression litter-strewn roads were giving visitors to the town.
One forum user; going by the name of Sherlock, said: "Could it be that they want them to be impressed by the fact that they aren't spending tax payers' money on trivial matters like clearing up litter?"
In response to the forum comments the Chairman of Greenham Parish Council , Tony Forward, said: "I cannot believe the amount of litter that appears within a week along the A339 and the long term litter chucked over fences onto the banks makes the place look very unpleasant.”
“This issue only comes about through the selfish actions of persons who throw away things and create the litter problem.”
Mr Forward said he would be meeting with council officers to discuss how to clear litter from the A339 without having to close lanes of the road.
A spokeswoman for West Berkshire Council, Joanne Bassett, said that the council operated a detailed litter-picking schedule every four weeks, apart from sections of the A339 that required lane closures for safe collecting.
“Given that, there is no reason rubbish should be dropped at the roadside and we urge people not to do it,” she said.
Mrs Bassett said that the council was aware that there were large amounts of rubbish in areas that were difficult to access and confirmed plans were in place to install gateways in fencing to allow easier access to these sites, including the area between Queens Road and Pinchington Lane.
The topic of litter was also picked up at a meeting of Greenham parish council where Mr Forward said that a number of initiatives had been launched with McDonald’s, Newbury College and West Berkshire Council, to allow litter pickers to access private land.
Mr Forward said: “The issue in the past has been who owns what and are we allowed in there but now McDonald's staff and wardens can go to the college and places they could not go before.”
“For example, our wardens have agreed to respond to calls from McDonald’s when drug paraphernalia is found on or near the outlet and remove offending items.”
Speaking at the meeting, PCSO Andrew Scott, said that the police have the power to issue litter tickets, which could result in a summons if left unanswered.
Mr Scott also said that he would arrange visits with schools and colleges to raise awareness about the seriousness of littering.