The Great British Beach Clean

What is it?
The official Great British Beach Clean takes place every year and is organised by the Marine Conservation Society. It collects data on what litter is being left on our beaches and helps inform the Marine Conservation Society’s campaigns for change and their ongoing conservation work. 

Despite the extensive coverage around the harm litter causes to our wild animals and sea life, there are still huge amounts of litter being left on our beaches. I know I have certainly been left emotionally impacted by Sir David Attenborough’s documentaries and seeing heartbreaking images of turtles caught in single use plastics and a baby albatross killed by a plastic toothpick.  

Whilst we should, of course, not need Sir Dave or the Marine Conservation Society to remind us of why we should not leave litter on our beaches and that we should just want to keep our beautiful coastline free of litter all year round, the campaigns that have followed previous years have led to:- 

The 5p carrier bag charge
The banning of microplastics in toiletries
The improved labelling of wet wipes
The increase in tax on single use plastics. 

The introduction of carrier bag charges alone has resulted in a reduction of carrier bags washing up on British shores by a whopping average of 80% over the past decade. So that cupboard full of bags for life you are harbouring has done some good! 

When is the Great British Beach Clean?
Get involved from Friday 20 September until Sunday 29 September 2024 

How to get involved?
Check out the Marine Conservation Society’s website (mcsuk.org) to find your closest beach clean, or, if your nearest beach isn’t on the list, you can organise your own event.  

Not near a beach but want to be involved?
Organised beach cleans run all year round so keep a look out on the Marine Conservation Society’s website for when and where these take place.  

Next time you do go to the beach, make sure you take a bag with you so you can take your rubbish away when you leave, you could also pick up any discarded plastic you do see. 

If you can’t get to the seaside through the 10 days for the Great British Beach Clean, there are still plenty of things we can do to help the environment at home. We can all make little changes to our behaviours and our lifestyles that could have a positive impact on the world around us. 

Take a look around your home, what single use plastics do you use which could be swapped for something more sustainable? Could you ditch the morning take away coffee cup and swap it for a reusable cup? Do you make your lunch before work or dash to the supermarket for a meal deal? A lot of the swaps you can make can also save you some of those hard-earned pennies which could go towards a trip to the seaside! 

We all enjoy a good day out at the seaside, let’s work together to ensure it is an enjoyable and safe space for all of us, including our sea life!