The South Leicestershire Litter Wombles took on the task of clearing the entire outer ring road, in Leicester, in summer.The South Leicestershire Litter Wombles took on the task of clearing the entire outer ring road, in Leicester, in summer.
The South Leicestershire Litter Wombles took on the task of clearing the entire outer ring road, in Leicester, in summer.

In pictures: Strangest finds by South Leicestershire Litter Wombles in 2024 – from a safe to 30-year-old packaging and a sanitary pad on a road sign

A used sanitary towel slapped to a Leicestershire road sign was among some of the more shocking finds discovered by Litter Wombles cleaning up the county last year.

Litter Wombles across Leicestershire picked up 40,000 bags of rubbish this year alone, and expect their all-time total to hit 200,000 next year. One volunteer, Sam Laywood, also raised £2,135 for the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust during a 16-hour, 26.7 mile sponsored pick between Belton, in Lincolnshire, and Broughton Astley, in the Harborough district.

Further north, the Litter Wombles took on the task of cleaning the entire outer ring road in Leicester.

The 15-pick project saw 929 bags of rubbish cleared over the summer. Starting near Glenfield Hospital, volunteers worked their way week by week, section by section through Rushey Mead, Evington through Oadby, Soar Valley way and back round to the Glenfield area.

The group also celebrated its fifth anniversary with a huge group pick in the city’s Western Park area. The event saw 59 volunteers come out and 126 bags of litter cleared.

The Wombles are a recognised fixture across Leicestershire, with their work even attracting the attention of Syston’s Knitting Banksy, who made a post box topper celebrating their achievements. This, the group said, has now done a tour of the county with the volunteers.

Among all their efforts have been a number of surprise finds – from a discarded safe to 30-year-old packaging to a used sanitary towel slapped on a road sign.

Scroll below to discover some of the Wombles more curious finds of 2024:

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