Residents prove they love Langlee in litter pick

SBHA organised the four-hour litter pick and provided refreshments for volunteers, and Scottish Borders Council gave out pickers and rubber gloves.

The pupils from primaries 2/3, 4 and 4/5 took great pride in making their home estate look its best.

The event was part of a wider SBHA-led initiative to improve the overall look and feel of Langlee, with input from residents playing a crucial role.

Two weeks ago SBHA made four skips available at various locations, and invited all residents to make use of them to help tackle fly-tipping; and Love Langlee, a dedicated Facebook page, has been set up to allow residents to share ideas for local improvements.

Kelly Mitchell, neighbourhood housing officer, said: “Within a week, more than 100 local people had joined Love Langlee, and it’s just this kind of enthusiasm that highlights what’s great about Langlee and its people”.

Councillor Euan Jardine said: “This is a fantastic event that SBHA have organised – just getting right into communities and speaking to people, encouraging people to take care of the area. If you see litter in an area, you’re more likely to drop litter. If you clean an area up, people are much more likely to take pride in their community. We’re here today as a task force, cleaning up the area, helping to make it look fresh, so we can hopefully continue the summer in a nice, tidy, happy place!”

And Councillor Sandy Aitchison added: “This may be a small thing in the bigger picture, but mony a mickle makes a muckle. If everybody plays their part, it helps. We want to encourage people to play their part in their communities. If you have visitors to your house, you would want to clean up. The environment where you live is just the same.”

Henry Coyle, SBHA’s director of customer services said: “SBHA serves communities across the Borders, all with their own specific needs and aspirations. We will use feedback to tailor our work in each area to what tenants and residents want to see happening where they live. Langlee, with its fantastic sense of community, is a great place to pilot this localised approach.”

“We’d like to thank everyone for coming out today – we couldn’t have ‘picked’ a better place, and we think it’s made a really big difference!”

Langlee residents are invited to join the local Facebook page, which can be found by searching for ‘Love Langlee’.