Rubbish support: Bin changes boost Paisley charities & streets

61% of Paisley people think better bins would deliver cleaner town

Environmental charity, Keep Scotland Beautiful, has reported that a social experiment to tackle littering in Paisley has helped to clean up town centre streets and raised hundreds of pounds to support local good causes.

The innovative project, undertaken on behalf of The Wrigley Company, and Renfrewshire Council, set out to test visitors to the town centres’ littering behaviours. Members of the public were encouraged to use specially branded bins which highlighted the good causes that were set to benefit if they disposed of their rubbish in them.

The experiment, undertaken over a 15-week period, monitored the existing litter levels in the area before installing the highly visible charity branded bin wraps. It then put local people to the test to see if they would use the bins more frequently if a good cause was set to benefit. Images can be accessed here.

The project was very successful, reporting a 16% increase in litter being collected. Surveys in the local area also found that 61% felt that by making bins more prominent would increase usage.

Derek Robertson, Chief Executive at Keep Scotland Beautiful, commented:

"Keep Scotland Beautiful recently reported that local environmental quality throughout Scotland is deteriorating. We all have a shared responsibility to do more collectively and individually to protect our local environments.

"By focussing on preventing litter being dropped in the first instance this reduces the need to clean up a local area. This innovative project is a perfect example of how we can encourage more people to carefully consider their littering behaviour and make it easy for them to do the right thing."

Alexandra West, Senior Manager Corporate Affairs for The Wrigley Company, UK & Ireland, commented:

"Wrigley was delighted to partner with Keep Scotland Beautiful on this project to explore how community rewards and visibility can influence people’s behaviour when it comes to disposing of their rubbish. This project is just one part of a wider programme of work we are undertaking on litter and littering behaviour, and the results from the Paisley project will inform our approach going forward. We were delighted that local charities also benefited from the study and would like to thank everyone that took part."

Three charities, Quarriers, ACCORD Hospice and Street Pastors, each received £200 for participating in the project.

Alice Harper, Chief Executive of Quarriers, said:

"Every day social care charity Quarriers works with people who are facing a variety of challenges. Litter has a significant effect on people’s quality of life and a litter free environment can help to make people feel safer.

"We welcome this kind donation and the opportunity to participate in the Paisley project. With this generous support, we are able to support more people in our local communities."

Further information about the Paisley experiment can be accessed here.