Sheffield litter pickers subjected to vicious online abuse after cleaning city neighbourhood

A party from the long-standing Sheffield Litter Pickers group went to Heeley Green on Sunday, July 5, but were later derided as ‘tree-hugging layabouts’ and ‘backward jobless idiots’ on the Only in Heeley Facebook group.

Now, group member Richard Simpson says many of them are considering giving up their good deeds due to increasing levels of abuse and the thankless task of clearing up after people who seem to take no pride in their own neighbourhoods.

He said: “People have told me not to look at the abuse as it is too upsetting. The hostility has been unbelievable.

“As well as the abuse on Facebook I have been shouted at had things thrown at me.

“But we’re only doing it to try and make Sheffield a nicer place to live - not to annoy people.”

“The women who organise it spend so much time on it and to get that kind of reaction is just awful.”

Richard got involved in the group after starting litter picking on his own on the Manor estate and has now been a member of the group for 18 months.

However, due both to the abuse and fly-tipping reaching epidemic proportions, some in the group are now questioning how long it can continue in its current form.

“Heeley Green had started to get a bit better over the last few years but it is just a nightmare now,” he said.

“Kids seem to have no idea about throwing litter now and think it is cool not to care about it but the woods are every bit as nice as the ones up Ecclesall.

“As well as rubbish we collect drugs paraphernalia, weapons and we even found a handgun once. It’s not really what you would want your children picking up and playing with.”

Sheffield Litter Pickers currently have almost 2,000 members on Facebook and run regular litter picking parties in neighborhoods across the city.

For more information see www.facebook.com/groups/SheffieldLitterPickers.

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