Sutton Bridge Wombles Andy Tilley and Deanne Gough receive Citizens of the Year award from councillors in special presentation at Curlew Centre
A dedicated couple who litter pick on a busy stretch of road have been rewarded for their community efforts at a presentation evening.
In the last 12 months Andy Tilley and Deanne Gough - the Sutton Bridge Wombles - have collected 4,096 bags of rubbish, travelled 1,660 miles and spent 868 hours of their time clearing the laybys on the A17 between Sutton Bridge and Long Sutton.
Now they have received a Citizens of the Year award from appreciative councillors in recognition of their volunteering from at a special presentation at the Curlew Centre.
The duo were presented with a trophy by South Holland District chairman Coun Andrew Woolf during an event, which had been arranged and sponsored by Coun Chris Brewis and Michael Booth.
Coun Chris Brewis said: “The efforts of these two are appreciated by not only local residents, but by people on a wider scale.
“Appreciation was shown for a unique couple who do an extraordinary job in their own time and on an entirely voluntary basis.
“We all appreciate an amazing job extremely well done.”
Andy and Deanne have found all manner of items including fake breasts and bottles full of urine and, no matter the weather, clear away rubbish that can now be left in tyre bins - along with clearing leaves and cutting back foliage.
Deanne said: "Even if trees fall in high winds, we sometimes move them, and then chainsaw the branches up."
The pair regularly clear more than 100 bags of rubbish a week - including bags of dog mess - from the area in order to keep it tidy.
Coun Woolf had paid tribute to the hard work of the couple. He said: “Such individual efforts help not only Sutton Bridge but the wider district as well.”
Andy and Deanne - who both work full time - handle fly tipping items and regularly endure abuse - and rubbish - hurled at them by passing motorists.
The volunteers also need knowledge of how to deal with vermin and up-to-date tetanus injections to complete their community service.
Andy said "We do not do this for recognition, of course.
“We do it for the community and our pride in it.
“We also go beyond litter picking, as we cut the grass and try to keep it all litter free and debris free."
The presentation enabled members of the community to chat and thank the couple - with proceedings introduced by Coun Mary Middleton, chairman of Sutton Bridge Parish Council.
Spare food from the occasion was donated to St Matthew’s Church in the village.
Andy and Deanne welcome any volunteers who would like to lend a hand and can be contacted via Facebook.What do you think? Post your comments below.
‘Their determination and passion to keep this little corner of the world clean is inspirational’
Reporter Jenny Beake spends the morning with dedicated litter-pickers and sees a whole new world of mess.
On a damp Saturday morning, I arranged to meet with Sutton Bridge Wombles Andy and Deanne on the A17 to see what they do, writes Jenny Beake.
I had to catch them up at the Long Sutton BP garage for a chat but had spotted them earlier when they were clearing out a lay-by at the entrance to Lincolnshire.
The couple are hard to miss in their large vehicle and trailer, dressed in their neon hi-vis - with motorists tooting and waving as they pass - acknowledging them in what seems to be a quite often thankless task.
Not dressed for the occasion of litter picking, I tentatively looked inside some of the tyre bins that they have created to contain rubbish rather than have it strewn across the lay-by.
I fear I have led a sheltered life as I was surprised at what I saw - and some photos of the items they have found are not suitable to be published on a family friendly website.
A full catheter, bottles of urine, rat holes around the tyres - and that was just at first glance.
It seemed like a whole new world of other people’s mess.
Andy was leaf-blowing when I arrived. He clears the lay-by of slippery leaves every two weeks and it has meant the nearb dykes are not blocked and water can run freely. There are up to 10 tyre bins in each of the eight lay-bys in the eight-mile stretch that Andy and Deanne clear at least one day a week.
That Saturday they filled 75 bags in one session. They are up at first light and it takes them four and a half hours to clear all the lay-bays and return the sacks to the Curlew Centre for collection.
The waste in the tyre bins along the A17 represents the basic needs of a journey for the travelling public - eating, drinking and peeing on the way.
Plus some extracurricular pursuits as reflected in the more ‘quirky’ items found.
But some of this waste could have been properly disposed of only minutes before -at the facilities which included McDonalds, BP Garage and Starbucks.
When I was young if I dropped litter there would be hell to pay - my parents made it sternly clear that we do not throw litter. I am a 1975 baby through-and-through - we watched the television series The Wombles which was ahead of its time tackling recycling issues and ‘making good use of bad rubbish’.
Perhaps people have no clue who The Wombles are - Great Uncle Bulgaria, Tobermory, Madame Cholet, Orinoco to name a few of the underground creatures who collect and recycle human rubbish.
The year I was born is now a pop group - The 1975 - so perhaps I can just put it down to being a different era then - though The Wombles theme tune is a classic. We had to put sweet wrappers and rubbish in our pockets - and took it home to throw in the bin.
My mum and dad would clear up all the litter at picnic areas - as a teenager I felt embarrassed - but they were absolutely right.
We set our standards high and cared about the community. And that was in Hull!
As Andy and Deanne so rightly believe - we now live in a throwaway society, the attitude is that it is someone else’s job to clear up other people’s mess. The irony here is that this isn’t Andy and Deanne’s job - it is their vocation - they are not paid hourly for what they do.
After they had cleaned what they fondly call ‘Pee-Pee Lay-by’ we headed off to McDonald’s so I could treat them to a well-deserved hot drink.
They have praised McDonald’s for donating refuse sacks and being supportive - along with Bush Tyres who help dispose of fly-tipped tyres - plus councillors who have helped insure and ensure their safety.
I was gobsmacked at what Andy and Deanne achieved that morning. I was shocked that they are abused by drivers who shout insults and throw cans at them.
Their determination and passion to keep this little corner of the world clean is inspirational.
It is not their job. But they do it anyway.
It is all of our jobs and our responsibility as individuals.
