Brent streets are cleanest ever

Local people are being thanked for their role in helping keep the borough's streets litter-free after new figures showed they are cleaner than ever before.

Independent figures from the Keep Britain Tidy campaign give the borough's roads and pavements the best-ever score for street cleanliness.

They prove that Brent has swept ahead in terms of street-cleaning since Brent Council invested in an improved waste and street-cleaning service in April 2007.

Results for 2008/9 found an average of 84 per cent of Brent streets reached a good standard for litter and detritus (stones, grit, and dirt). It is a big increase on previous years, when Brent chalked up a score of 78.7 per cent for 2007/8 and 68 per cent for 2006/7.

Brent Council decided to invest an extra £2.1m from April 2007 in first class street-cleaning and recycling services provided by Veolia Environmental Services. Before that, Brent was a below average performer compared to other London boroughs.

New initiatives since April 2007 include:

• extra sweeping for many areas
• a new 'village system' where Veolia managers and staff take responsibility for their particular area of the borough
• the installation of Metrobins for recycling paper, cans and plastic bottles at all tube and train stations, cutting down on litter dropped by passengers.

Streetwatchers - local volunteers who report envirocrimes in their area - have also played a big part in the improvement while members of the public are taking more care to avoid littering the streets.

Cllr Daniel Brown, Brent Council's Lead Member for Highways and Transportation, said: "I'm proud to say that our streets are noticeably cleaner than they were two or three years ago.

"As well as all the extra work by Brent Council and Veolia, residents are also playing a big part. More people are putting litter in the bin. Thanks to everyone who's making the extra effort. Please keep up the good work."