Harold Hill Wombles collect thousands of bags of litter.

The Harold Hill Wombles have become a well known team across Havering. Armed with their litter pickers, high visibility jackets and bin liners, the team of volunteers can be seen across the borough picking up litter that lazy people discard on the floor.

Started by Michelle Squire just over a year ago, the Wombles have gone from strength to strength and have collected thousands of bags of rubbish from the borough.

Michelle told the Havering Daily: “I began walking my daughter to school and as we walked together I started to notice how much litter there was on the ground. What a mess certain parts of the borough were. I saw the same litter everyday and no one doing anything about it so I decided to start this campaign myself.”

Michelle was inspired by the Wickford Wombles and the local Deer Aid group so set up the Wombles in a bid to tackle the litter problems in the area.

“It’s great to see all our volunteers out and about collecting litter and the incredible difference they are making in the area. For example Amy’s park last year was full of old toys and litter now it is much cleaner. They are not instant results but if we all keep chipping away at it then we can certainly make an impact.”

Volunteers are often praised for their hard work which is encouraging. Michelle continued: “We do get praised which is nice and people smile at us a lot when they see us out litter picking.”

The group originally began in Harold Hill but volunteers now work right across Havering picking up endless bags of litter.

“We work very well with the council and they are doing fantastic job collecting litter and we know how dedicated they are. Sometimes it can be an uphill struggle but we stay positive and it feels really good going out there and doing something about it.

“We have collected around 2,000 bags of litter, fly tips and pulled out lots of rubble from the woods that gets in the deer’s way. We hope our work encourages others out there to come and join in and help us keep Havering litter free.”

Well done to Michelle and her team of volunteers, they help make a difference in our borough and are community heroes.