Visitors abusing parks by littering and barbecuing in Sheffield

Following the recent hot weather and the ease in lockdown, the city’s parks have seen a huge increase in visitor numbers and, with it, a huge increase in litter.

Although most residents take pride in the parks and respect the natural environment, many also abused Sheffield’s green havens, leaving bags of rubbish, litter, bottles and cans, food waste and even scorching grass from the use of barbeques.

Sheffield Council’s parks and countryside service and its Streets Ahead contractor, Amey, have been working hard to keep these areas clean and safe for everyone to use.

Volunteers and members of the public have also been doing their bit to restore parks to their natural beauty.

Coun Mary Lea, council cabinet member for culture, parks and leisure, said: “Our many parks are one of Sheffield’s unique and great features and during lockdown have provided our residents with a place to relax, take exercise, clear their minds and breathe in the fresh air.

“I know it’s been a blessing for many that restrictions have eased and groups are being allowed to meet outdoors and we want people to enjoy our natural surroundings.

“However, it cannot come at the cost of our green spaces being ruined.

“We want local people to mak e the most of our parks but we must insist everyone shows respect and cleans up after themselves.

“The scenes I saw after hot weather were unacceptable. It’s simple, if you can carry stuff to the park, you can take it away.

“Our teams have tripled their efforts and been working extremely hard to clear up other people’s mess, which frankly should not be necessary.

“ I know a lot of local people have also been voluntarily doing their bit to help, we are very grateful for this but must stress that their safety comes first.

“We don’t want anyone putting themselves at risk because others are being inconsiderate.

“I ask, please, for everyone’s sake don’t spoil our parks, let’s make sure we can all enjoy them.”

The council is emptying bins in most parks daily, with busy sites such as Endcliffe being attended several times per day.

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our advertisers - and consequently the revenue we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription.

Subscribe to The Star website and enjoy unlimited access to local news and information online and on our app. With a digital subscription, you can read more than 5 articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content.

Visit htt ps://www.thestar.co.uk/subscriptions now to sign up.Our journalism costs money and we rely on advertising, print and digital revenues to help to support them. By supporting us, we are able to support you in providing trusted, fact-checked content for this website.