More than 60 bags of litter fished from river

Volunteers say they fished out more than 60 bags of litter from a mile-long section of the River Soar in the space of a week.

Some of the items recovered included a mattress, a safe and a religious statue.

The clean-up involved 100 people on kayaks, canoes and paddleboards removing the waste as part of a national effort to clear rivers of plastic and rubbish.

The litter picks were carried out by people from local groups and businesses along one mile (1.6km) of the river either side of Leicester Outdoor Pursuits Centre in Belgrave.

The groups paddled along the river equipped with litter pickers, gloves and waste bags to remove the floating rubbish, as well as objects stuck in the banks.

The Leicester Outdoor Pursuits Centre teamed up with Paddle UK - previously named British Canoeing - for the 2025 Big Paddle Cleanup from 24 May and through the half-term week as part of a national effort to clear litter from UK rivers.

Parents and children had been encouraged to take to the water during the school holidays as part of the clean-up effort.

One of the volunteers was 10-year old Ada who says it is not difficult to find a bin rather than throw rubbish in the river.

"We even found whole bags full of rubbish in there. It was easier to pick them out, but it isn't nice because people should just put it in the bin, it's not that hard."

Meanwhile, Arya, also aged 10, says she felt sad lifting a statue of The Virgin Mary from the river during her clear up.

"Someone just discarded it, it wasn't nice to see as it means a lot to people," she said.

Hayley Smitham Hopewell, education and development manager at the pursuits centre, says the volunteers have found some unsettling things in the river in their recent clean up.

"Unfortunately, we found a dog, which meant we had to call the RSPCA, which was very sad. We also find mattresses, safes filled with valuables, gold and even a motorbike."

She also says more than 1,000 bags of rubbish have been recovered from the river since she joined the facility, indicating that despite their efforts, the problem still persists.

"I understand that people want to use the river as a sanctuary by throwing flowers in etc," she added.

"But some of the things we find are bits of jewellery, photo frames or ornaments, which is really damaging to the wildlife and to the children who come here."

Sue Willis, engagement co-ordinator for the Canal and River Trust visited the site during the week to understand the scale of the problem.

"It's quite surprising how bad it is, what you see on the surface is the wrappers and crisp packets but beneath the surface is lots of plastic bags and even big pieces of iron - things that aren't visible to the eye unless you go out on the boats."

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