Pre-school pupils stage protest over rubbish blowing into playground

Sunday, 3 May 2026 12:57

By Richard Hunt

Pupils at a Blackpool pre-school got fed up of the rubbish that kept blowing off the street and into their playground.

The problem seemed to be made worse by the fact that there was no bin directly outside Devonshire Road Primary Academy Pre-School.

So, with help from preschool manager Giuliana Hornby, they staged a placard-waving protest outside the premises.

Mrs Hornby said: “The children are protesting outside because there is no public bin nearby.

“We regularly have litter blowing into our play area and in our entrance way. This week we even saw a seagull picking up the litter.

“So this has really inspired the children to make a change. They’ve been learning about how litter harms the environment, so they wanted to take action and ask for a bin outside school.

“The protest is also about helping children understand that their voices matter and hat they can make a positive difference in their local community.

“They care about the environment and they hope that Blackpool Council will listen to what we and the children are asking for.”

Outside the school, on Devonshire Road, the youngsters, aged between 3 and 5 years old, proudly marched with their banners, chanting “We want a bin, we want a bin!”

And their campaign has not been for nothing. After hearing about the protest. the two councillors from Brunswick ward Cllrs Laura Marshall and Matthew Thomas, pledged to provide a bin.

They said on the Brunswick Ward Blackpool Facebook page: “Well done to the children at Devonshire Primary Academy for raising awareness about the harms of litter in the ward and for voicing your concerns democratically.

“We (your ward councillors) will happily provide an additional bin in the area, close to the school gates to reduce the issue – in the same way we did for St Kents School to reduce dog mess.

“We know Enveco visited Devonshire School earlier this year in partnership with the ward councillors on the same issue as we organised the visit. We could look at a similar workshop on litter.”