Keep Wales Tidy’s impact across Cardiff
The Street Litter (LEAMS) surveys carried out in twelve local authority areas in early 2024 make it clear that Wales is facing an escalating litter crisis that threatens our communities, our natural environment and our future prosperity. They reveal a staggering 286% increase in the number of ‘D’-graded streets—those with completely unacceptable cleanliness—marking one of the worst results in 17 years of monitoring.
Cardiff achieved a cleanliness indictor score of 64.7 during our LEAMS surveys in 2024-25. There was a significant increase in the number of ‘A’ and ‘B+’ grade streets, but there was an increase in the number of ‘C’ and ‘D’ grade streets, resulting in 83.3% of streets deemed to be an acceptable level of cleanliness.
Individual and domestic sourced litter in Cardiff continues to be a problem, and there is a significant increase in the amount of other (unidentifiable), which has resulted in this type of litter overtaking domestic. Smoking-related litter and confectionary litter remain the most common litter types, but all four types (smoking, drinks, confectionary and fast food) have decreased from last year.
It has been good to see some improvements in areas but there is still work to do through targeted preventions and behaviour change in certain demographics.
Over the past year, Keep Wales Tidy has continued to support Cardiff’s drive to create a more resilient city through our delivery of Caru Cymru. This initiative supports the Cardiff Corporate Plan 2023-2026 for a ’Stronger, Fairer, Green Cardiff’ in the ambition toward reducing litter, increasing recycling and promoting clean air.
As we move into 2025, we will continue to follow a clear strategic approach across Cardiff and across Wales.
Our Local Environment Matters. Litter is far more than an eyesore; it pollutes mercilessly, undermining both public health and environmental sustainability. Litter and neglect are a tangible phenomenon which can reflect social inequalities and uneven economic distribution of resources. We have openly asked Welsh Government to accelerate policies addressing Local Environmental Quality (LEQ) and to provide Local Authorities, third-sector organisations and community groups with more innovative financial mechanisms to address LEQ issues.
Cleansing and litter prevention are a critical service for Local Authorities and other public landowners – persistent issues like fast food litter, fly-tipping and dog fouling are not only unsightly but they also drive up crime, erode trust in democratic authorities and deter investment.
The impacts are especially severe for Wales’ most deprived communities, where poorly maintained areas exacerbate health inequalities, increase crime, and diminish community pride.
Amongst the challenges there is, however, some good news. Thanks to Welsh Government and SPF funding via local authorities, Keep Wales Tidy has supported action across the first half of 2024 to address the issue. Over 4,000 volunteers and groups have removed 85,000 kg of waste supported by 251 Litter Picking Hubs and 240 Litter Free Zones.
These results highlight the power of collective action and funded activity, but it also highlights the need for a robust, unified response to protect Wales’ environment and communities
Our impact at the half year point
Eradicating litter and waste in Cardiff
Under the Caru Cymru banner, we have delivered campaigns and activities to reduce litter and waste, including support for the transition to a circular economy in Wales.
Over the first half of the year across Cardiff we have underpinned the work that is being done to improve local environmental quality in a number of ways:
- We have removed 4,401 bags of rubbish from 790 locations, which represents 22,005 kilograms of litter from the environment.
- Our army of volunteers have dedicated 4,306 hours to helping their local environment which is worth £43,060 to the Welsh economy.
- We have 19 Litter Picking Hubs.
- We have 31 schools and businesses operating Litter Free Zones.
- And, we have inspired your local communities to act and care for their environment.
Creating and restoring green spaces in Cardiff
Keep Wales Tidy manages several national programmes which create and care for our green spaces and waterways.
Our Local Places for Nature programme engages local communities and organisations to create more biodiverse areas, pollinator habitats, and food-growing opportunities across Wales, particularly in locations which lack accessible green space.
Over the past year in Cardiff our activities have been tailored to ensure inclusivity and to reach those people and places that need our help.
- Of 648 garden packages that we have available this year, we have allocated 444 to groups in this period. Of these 49 are in the Cardiff area.
- 8 of these have been allocated to groups with disabled participants.
- 13 of these have been allocated to groups that include socially disadvantaged participants.
- 9 of these have been allocated to groups that include young people.
Setting standards for environmental excellence in Cardiff
Keep Wales Tidy manages the internationally renowned Blue Flag, Green Flag for Parks, and Green Key awards. These awards give us the opportunity to set standards for environmental quality across Wales and to nurture a more biodiverse environment.
This year to date in Cardiff there are:
- 19 fully awarded flags flying at parks and green spaces.
- 22 Community awarded Green Flags flying across community green spaces.
- A total of 41 Green Flag awarded green spaces.
Empowering young people in Cardiff
At Keep Wales Tidy, we recognise that prioritising youth engagement is key to creating custodians for a future which is greener and safer for Wales and for the planet.
Through our Eco-Schools programme, we have set many thousands of young people on a journey of positive environmental impact, and have further actively engaged them in positive behaviours through wider community-based activities like Spring Clean Cymru.
This year has also seen the recruitment of our second cohort of Youth Board members – offering young people from across Wales the opportunity to actively engage with our work and to have open discussions, offering advice on how we shape our work.
This year to date in Cardiff :
- There are 56 schools with an Eco-Schools Award (Bronze, Silver, Green Flag and Platinum).
- Of these 29 are Platinum Awards.
- 80 are actively engaged with Keep Wales Tidy.
- 27 have attended a teacher training and / or support session.
- 8 attended pupil focussed workshops.
