Community-minded residents have been busy picking up litter from the streets.

The Penygroes-based group Ffrindiau Penygroes teamed up with the local policing team to clear paths and areas around the village centre, whilst a group of local Talysarn residents collected 13 bin bags full of litter from areas around their community.

Gwynedd councillor Judith Humphreys, who helps to organise the Penygroes litter-picks, said she hoped the litter picking raised awareness of the issue.

“Ffrindiau Penygroes have been collecting litter regularly for a while now and we’ve had a great response from people in the community,” she said.

“Ffrindiau Penygroes are very grateful to the police, Keep Wales Tidy, pupils of Ysgol Bro Lleu who have also occasionally volunteered for their commitment to helping out and to the council’s Caru Gwynedd team for providing the equipment and removing the bags.

“The hope is that our efforts will help raise awareness locally that littering is not acceptable to the majority of residents, and also that we are serious about increasing community pride.”

Jill Williams, who organises the Talysarn litter-picks, said: “Our group of around 14 volunteers is very informal, with normally around eight turning up to our regular litter picks – not bad considering it was just two of us who started out.

“We were just fed-up with the state of the village and so decided that something had to be done.

“Thanks to all the volunteers for their help and to Gwynedd Council for helping us get started and picking up the bags.”

The Talysarn litter-pick was commended by local Councillor Dilwyn Lloyd, who said: “I’m really happy to see that our local residents in Talysarn have taken the initiative to tackle litter in their community.

It shows that their community pride and spirit is alive and well and that they will not put up with the mess left by an irresponsible few.”

Anyone found guilty of littering in any public place could face a court summons and a fine of up to £2,500.

To report any instances of fly-tipping, contact Gwynedd Council’s Street Enforcement Team on 01766 771000.

The council’s Caru Gwynedd project receives funding from Keep Wales Tidy’s Caru Cymru initiative, which is financed by a Welsh Government grant.

You can contact the Caru Gwynedd team on 01766 771000 or send an email to [email protected]u.