CHILDREN from a Forest primary school have set an example to others in their community by clearing their village of litter.

Pupils from Littledean C of E took to the streets armed with litter pickers and black bags to see how much rubbish they could collect in the area near their school.

The clean-up was led by the Forest Council’s Street Warden team as part of this year’s Great Big Green Week, a national campaign which shines a light on the work of communities to tackle climate change, protect nature and care for their local area.

The litter pick is the latest action taken by the school’s Carbon Footprints Club, which was setup by outgoing Year 6s last year to raise awareness of environmental issues.

The club members say they want to “make the world a better place” by helping to protect the environment.

Sarah Richards, High Level Teaching Assistant at Littledean, said: “The students are very much the driving force behind the club.

“Each has a specific focus covering all different areas of sustainability, from energy-saving to gardening, and the group meets regularly to discuss what actions they would like to do and how they can encourage and inform fellow students about the environment.

“The visit by the Council’s wardens, which included an assembly to the entire school, has been a great bonus.”

To date, the club has created in-school displays and held assemblies and fund-raising activities to help educate their fellow pupils on what they can do to help the environment.

They have also planted flowers and fruit trees donated by the Woodland Trust, with the aim that in the future pupils will be able to eat locally grown, healthy snacks.

Councillor Richard Leppington, portfolio holder for environment at the Forest Council, said: “Our younger generations can be great influencers and it’s heartening to hear how passionate the pupils at the school are about protecting their environment and how informed they are, even at a young age, about the issue of litter, the harm and pollution it causes, and why it should be avoided.

“As part of this year’s Great Big Green Week the Council’s team of street wardens have been active visiting schools across the district to talk about litter, loan equipment and support with litter picking, and we would invite any school interested in doing something similar to get in touch.”