A FRIENDS group for a Darlington nature reserve have taken part in a mass litter pick to get the area ready for Spring.

About 20 members of the Friends of Rockwell Nature Reserve, in the Haughton area, carry out litter picks up to four times a year, collecting rubbish dropped by people who use the riverside route to go into the town centre.

The Friends worked around the new footbridge over the River Skerne, which is waiting for a lick of paint before it is complete, before carrying on down the riverbank towards the Skerne Bridge, also known as the Five Pound Note Bridge.

Margs Graham, a member of the Friends, said: “We try to have as many litter picks as possible during the year but we can’t do them in summer because there is some much growth that we can’t see what we are trying to pick.

“It’s an area that gets a lot of litter unfortunately because it gets a lot of people passing through on the way to town and walking dogs.

“We’re happy to see the new bridge in place and almost complete. It’s a great improvement on what was there before.”