A LITTER picking group has launched a fundraiser for new equipment, as well as highlighting the ongoing problems affecting the town.

Charlene Bessell, of Horwich Clean Up Brigade, has highlighted an ongoing fundraiser to bring in a heavy duty trolley - after the group collected 175 bags of litter in just one day.

The group regularly collects waste around Horwich and surrounding areas, clearing everything from fields and roads to roundabouts and hillsides.

Other tasks include graveyard tidy-up sessions and keeping an eye on well-known local 'grot spots'.

Charlene said: “We previously bought quite a few tools so we launched a new one for the trolley and some litter picking hoops.

“They would really help us - we have had some donations already and they go a long way to helping us clean up different areas.

“I’m just a volunteer - I hated seeing the rubbish around here and wanted to do something to help.”

Charlene recently appealed for volunteers after an area near Rivington Pike was left trashed following a weekend of visitors.

Later Beki Martin spent three hours collecting seven bags worth of rubbish, including firework remnants. She also tackled overflowing bin.

Beki said: “The Pike’s rubbish was just overflowing and people just keep adding to it. It’s the same in so many places and it’s going on everywhere unfortunately. There were fireworks, dog poo bags, bottles, cans, pipes - just everything. I think it is a mentality thing for a lot of people, who will throw something away and just assume someone will be there to pick it up.”

Figures recently revealed there were more than 900 cases of fly-tipping in Bolton the last year.

Since the launch of our We Love Bolton campaign at the start of the year Bolton Council has introduced tougher penalties for fly-tippers – and there has been a huge surge in volunteer groups helping to clean up our town.