Birmingham Shines in Clean Britain Awards

• Apr. 24 by Alice Tidey (0)

Birmingham has been recognised for the cleanliness of its city centre in a national competition.
The British Cleaning Council, an organisation established in 1982 and dedicated to the cleaning industry, revealed last month the winners of their Clean Britain Awards.

The winners were announced on March 10 during a ceremony during the Cleaning show at the NEC. Birmingham which was entered in the City category received 5 Star Grade, the highest grade possible, along with eleven other cities such as Bristol, Cardiff or Sheffield.

The Clean Britain Awards which succeeds Britain’s Cleanest City Awards, was first introduced in 1988 and with the mission “to provide cleanliness recognition for both the custodians of public spaces and the people who use them, through the development of a sense of civic pride and respect for the environment in which people live, work or visit, throughout the UK”.

The awards which are becoming increasingly popular, run every two years, and have had for 2008/2009 a total of 63 entries from local authorities all over the UK in three different categories: City, Town and District.

To keep the results as truthful and fair as possible, inspection visits are unannounced and last a minimum of half a day during which the team looks at a number of criteria relating to standards of cleanliness.

These criteria include roadways, pavements, any parks, public toilets, litter/waste bins and public areas (bus and train stations and shopping areas).