Combatting the problem of litter across the borough, specifically chewing gum, was the focus of the recent ‘Bin it!’ roadshow.
The award winning educational roadshow saw seven local schools take part in ten sessions; St. Ronan’s College, Lurgan, Lismore Comprehensive, Craigavon, St. John the Baptist College, Portadown, New-Bridge Integrated College, Loughbrickland, St. Patricks College, Banbridge, St. Catherine’s, Armagh and City of Armagh High School.
Staff from Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council facilitated the roadshow to inform our young residents about the importance of keeping their communities free from litter.
Developed by The Wrigley Company, in partnership with specialist education consultancy Rapport, the ‘Bin it!’ campaign is aimed at 11-13 year olds and explores the issues and impact of this particular anti-social behaviour, while encouraging young people to work together to make a change to their local areas and keep their environment tidy.
The fun and entertaining workshop helps support the curriculum as well as encouraging student co-operation, interest
and participation.
Welcoming the return of the roadshow, Chair of the Environmental Services Committee, Alderman Elizabeth Ingram commented: “It is brilliant to see the enthusiasm and energy from our young students during this year’s ‘Bin it!’ roadshow.
The roadshow not only helps raise awareness and understanding of the long term effect litter has on our environment but also helps encourage a positive shift in behaviour and attitude towards proper litter disposal.
“With the equally innovative and dynamic national chewing gum campaign ‘Bin it Your Way’ finishing in October, these initiatives highlight Council’s commitment to safeguard the environment for the many generations to come.”
‘Bin it!’ has a proven record of success, with results from the 2016 tour showing that 80% of students who saw the show said they would now be sure to dispose of their chewing gum in the bin.
The ‘Bin it!’ team of actors aim to engage and educate young people, and evaluation of last year’s tour showed that two-thirds of respondents said the roadshow increased their knowledge about littering.
Also, up to six weeks after the show, the number of children who said they believed that they should try to recycle more increased to 77%.
Julie Lovell, Public Affairs Senior Manager, Mars Chocolate UK & Wrigley UK also commented: “Bin it! has been an incredibly successful programme to date and we are delighted to have reached over 140,000 pupils across the UK over the last ten years.
“We are thrilled to have returned to the borough for this part of the 2017 tour – it’s great to see that the area is committed to reducing litter levels, starting with behaviour change.
“We hope that the success of the Bin It! will continue to grow as we reach out to even more young people, reinforcing our messages around littering and urging children to take pride in and look after their local communities and environments.”
Touring right across the UK and Ireland, the free roadshows are designed to tackle the impact of littering and help students understand why it is so important to take personal responsibility for correct litter disposal.
The roadshows will also in turn help raise awareness of the environmental cost and social issues surrounding discarded litter, particularly chewing gum.
To learn more about the roadshow please contact the Environmental Education Team at Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council on 0300 0300 900 and ask for Pamela Hanna (Craigavon), Kate Campbell (Armagh) or Gemma Richardson (Banbridge).
