#LitterHero Ambassador Hafsa Mekki scoops award from Downing Street

A mother from Manchester who started up a community-based eco project to clear litter and promote sustainability has today, 6 April, received Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s daily Points of Light award.

Hafsa, from Manchester, started up ‘Moss Side Eco Squad’, bringing together people of all ages and backgrounds from her inner-city neighbourhood.

After her maternity leave and experiences with anxiety, Hafsa created the inspirational initiative as a means of connecting with her neighbours and reducing social isolation whilst taking pride in her local area.

The group now meets once a month for a communal clean, but also loans equipment to allow members to carry out smaller cleans in their own time with friends and family, helping to clear on average 10 bags of litter every week.

Hafsa is a Litter Hero ambassador for Keep Britain Tidy, which runs the Great British Spring Clean, the annual campaign to encourage people to look after their local environment and eliminate litter.

Keep Britain Tidy is today congratulating the inspirational mother on her award.

Hafsa said: "I'm absolutely thrilled to be receiving this award! I'm so grateful for every single person who has joined the group at some point over the last two years and has helped keep me motivated and encouraged to carry on the task of keeping our streets clean.

"Whilst it may feel like an endless task at times, the friendship groups and community spirit that has built up along the way has made it all worthwhile."

Hafsa is the 1902nd person to receive the Prime Minister’s UK daily Points of Light award, which was first launched in April 2014 to recognise outstanding individuals making a difference where they live. Each day, someone, somewhere in the country is selected to receive the award to celebrate their remarkable achievements.