Morecambe resident thanked for alley clean-ups by town’s MP
A Morecambe resident who has been cleaning up the alley behind his house since 2017 has received a letter of thanks from the town’s MP.
Lizzi Collinge’s note to Kevin Smith who is a window cleaner said: “I just wanted to drop you a quick note to say thank you for everything you do in the local community. Your work is seen and is really appreciated.
"Our public spaces are all the better for your work and I know residents notice.”
Kevin said: “I feel privileged to help everybody and I would like to thank Lancaster City Council for their help as well."
Kevin Smith has been pulling out weeds and binning the litter by his Primrose Street home in Morecambe for the past nine years.
“It makes it a nice place to be”, said Kevin, who was first spurred into sprucing up the alleyways so he could play football with his son, also called Kevin.
“I wanted to make it clean so there was no dog dirt, broken glass or rubbish, to make it a better place to live and so that me and my son could play football down there.
“It makes the neighbours happy, they appreciate it, which is nice and the thanks is better than being paid!
“The council are doing their bit to keep the area clean, but everyone has a responsibility, and we should all take pride in our community.”
He believes that people are more likely to drop litter in already littered or unkempt areas and so urged others to get out into their community and do what they could – from picking up a few plastic bottles off the kerb side to pulling out a few weeds.
“Just five minutes every now and then makes a lot of difference, and it’s nice as it gets you out talking to your neighbours too,” added Kevin.
Lancaster City Council can provide equipment and guidance to support individuals or groups who want to host their own litter pick, and will collect the rubbish at the end of the day.
For more information visit https://www.lancaster.gov.uk/environmental-problems/community-cleanups
Alternatively you can email [email protected] and someone will get back to you with more details.
Community champion Kevin Smith won the ‘Best Neighbour of the Year Award’ at the inaugural Best of Lancashire Awards 2023.
He was presented with a trophy.
At the Make A Difference awards in 2023 he received the community champion award and also the Unsung hero award.
At the Make A Difference awards in 2025 he was highly commended for being a great neighbour.