PEOPLE from across the town are being asked to get bin bags at the ready for the next Keep Okehampton Tidy Day.

A number of organisations and children, staff and parents from Okhampton Primary School will turn out across the town to pick up litter and tidy the town on Saturday, April 25.

The original idea of uniting the town's organisations and voluntary groups to do a big litter clear up was formed in 2013 after pupils of Kes Tor Class wrote individual letters to the town mayor about the overuse of plastic shopping bags and the state of littering in the town. Following these letters the litter picking event was created.

On the day there will be two main groups and local people are asked to join up with either group.

Both will start at 9.30am and the Okement Rivers Improvement Group will meet at the recycling bins in the Waitrose Car Park.

The second group will also meet at 9.30am and will meet outside Okehampton Primary School.

Robert Flexman, a member of the Okement Rivers Improvement Group, said that the main centre of the town was better than many others but the access roads into Okehampton such as New Road and parts of Exeter Road were particularly problematic for litter.

'Those areas get littered by people throwing away coffee cups, fast food containers, that sort of thing,' he said.

'The main point of the Keep Okehampton Tidy day is getting people out there just tidying up their community.

'Even if that means just tidying near to where they live, maybe their street and around, all the contributions mean something.

'If people are in town taking part in the litter pick, make sure to look in hedges and shrubbery. If picking up litter thrown into hedges, make sure you have some protection like gloves or something to protect your arms.'

As has been the arrangement on previous collections, rubbish collected can be taken to Okehampton Primary School by 2pm on the tidy day and arrangements have been made for collection later in the same day.

For those who can not or would prefer not to be involved in a larger group, they are encouraged to try and collect the litter in their own road and bag it up with their household rubbish for the weekly collection.

To get a community or voluntary group involved, contact Robert Flexman on 07986 383745.

Further information can be found on the 'Keep Okehampton Tidy' Facebook page, which now has 189 members.