VOLUNTEERS ENGAGED in clearing a mile long sections of the Soar tell they have fished out more than 60 bags of litter from the navigation.
It taking a week to clear the litter from the section of the Grand Union Canal, Janet Friend reports.
The items
The items recovered included a mattress, a safe and a religious statue, with the clean-up involving 100 people with kayaks, canoes and paddle-boards removing the waste as part of a national effort to clear rivers of plastic and rubbish.
The litter picks were carried out by people from local groups and businesses along one mile either side of Leicester Outdoor Pursuits Centre in Belgrave.
The various groups were equipped with litter pickers, gloves and waste bags to remove the floating rubbish, as well as objects stuck in the banks and left on the towpath. The picture shows some of the litter removed from the navigation.
Teamed-up
The Leicester Outdoor Pursuits Centre teamed-up with Paddle UK for the 2025 Big Paddle Cleanup from 24th May and through the half-term week as part of a national effort to clear litter from UK rivers.
Both parents and children had been encouraged to take to the water during the school holidays as part of the clean-up effort.