Summer Pick-me-up: Protect Our Waterways!
This Summer, we want to make waves. To raise awareness. To take action. To Protect Our Waterways!
Keep litter out of our waterways!
We’re inviting Cleanup Hubs and litter pickers across the UK to take on a new challenge — to help stop litter before it reaches our rivers, canals, and oceans.
Sign up to take part before Friday, July 11th 2025
How to get involved
We're asking people across the UK to get their communities involved through fun, hands-on activities that make a real impact.
And we can help! From litter pickers to learning packs, we can support you in running activities, or getting involved in events this summer.
So, will you take part and run at least one activity this summer? Choose from the activities below!
Waterside litter pick
Grab some gloves and a bag, and tidy up near a local river, canal, pond, or stream. You’ll be making an instant difference by keeping litter out of our waterways.
Complete a printable activity
Perfect for families and schools! Enjoy wordsearches, facts, and fun challenges while learning how to protect our planet.
Craft a marine creature from recycled materials
Get creative! Use clean, recycled items from home (plastic bottles, cardboard, wrappers) to make marine creatures such as a crab, turtle, or fish — and give waste a second life.
Design a “Protect Our Waterways” poster
Show the world what clean waterways mean to you! Draw, paint, or collage your message!
Do your own activity
Got your a brilliant idea to help Protect Our Waterways?
Whether it’s a local clean up, awareness event, or something totally new — go for it!
Why We're Protecting Our Waterways
Litter dropped on land often ends up in our waterways—carried by wind and rain into drains that lead straight to rivers and streams. From there, it flows into the ocean, breaking down into harmful microplastics that pollute ecosystems and damage habitats.
Plastic doesn’t disappear—it lingers for decades, even centuries, affecting wildlife along the way. Animals mistake it for food, become tangled, or injured by sharp waste.
And it’s not just a local issue—this pollution can travel across oceans and wash up on coastlines around the world. What starts as a single wrapper can become part of a global problem.
Taking part? Enter our competition!
Whether you’re litter picking by a stream, crafting marine creatures from recyclables, or creating a poster to raise awareness — we want to see it! Snap a photo of your activity and share it on social media using #SummerPickMeUp, or email it to info@cleanupuk.org.uk to enter our competition and be in with a chance to win a bundle of sustainable goodies!
Plus, everyone who takes part will receive a Protect Our Waterways certificate to celebrate your impact.