Clean and Green Pallion

04/09/2026

This week has seen a return to Pallion Subway to finish some painting of the handrails and guards that have been vandalised and graffitied on, as well as a large litter pick of fly tipping and rubble/ rubbish along the banks of European Way. I finished the week by working with learners from an Alternative Education Programme based in Pallion, engaging them in planting and horticulture of the planter boxes outside of Highfield Academy.

Litter and Rubbish had been blown down the street at European way and some more had been dumped on the bank facing Pallion Retail Park. This has since been cleared and all rubbish has been removed from the site along with the Co2 canisters that had been left.

I returned to Pallion Subway with two volunteers to refurbish the handrails and guards that Passover the Pallion Subway. The two volunteers and I painted over any marks that were still visible and have made the area look a lot smarter and tidier.

Local councillors were invited to come and take part in an activity alongside some learners from a programme based in Pallion. The learners engaged really well, even choosing a colour scheme for different boxes and removing any old dead plants

West Sunderland Community
Springboard

04/09/2026

28/08/2026

This weeks impact has seen some much-required attention across the Pallion Ward. The first major impact was removal of graffiti from Pallion Subway crossing. An area which residents had raised concerns about graffiti and ASB. Other areas included removal of burnt cans from blackie park woods, A large litter pick of cans and wrappers scattered along European way and some much-needed strimming of overgrowth on Keelmans Ln.

Each week across the Pallion/ Ford area we are out in the community making a difference to green spaces, working with local charities, councillors and businesses to make sure Pallion and Ford are well maintained and looking as beautiful as we all know they can be.

Last week, a litter pick was completed along the bank surrounding the Pallion Subway area. Planned graffiti removal and painting works were unfortunately disrupted by stormy weather conditions. This week, works were prioritised and successfully completed, with the graffiti now painted over.

Keelmans Ln path was over grown and the area needed some help in removal of fly tipping and cutting back of the vegetation. With help from our volunteer, we managed to cut the overgrowth right back and remove the bags of glass bottles that had been thrown in there.

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West Sunderland Community

21/08/2026

Making Pallion look greener and more attractive!

This week has seen the greenery and plantation spring back to life with the rain making a welcome appearance. With help from volunteers, we made a huge impact clearing fly tips and litter that found its way into a popular public footpath areas, as well as freshening up the planter boxes on St Lukes Terrace.

Victory street and adjacent streets have seen winds picking up and creating tunnels for rubbish to accumulate. With this, the area has seen an enormous amount of litter and fly tipping along the bank leading to the main road. All litter has since been cleared and fly tipping removed. Between myself and our volunteer we collected a massive 8 bags full of litter as well as the fly tipping.

The weather has been unkind to the plant life living in the planter boxes on St Lukes terrace. Most have died and dried up, regardless of watering. One of our volunteers helped remove any dead plants and restore some colour and life back to the boxes, making the street look cleaner and attractive.

West Sunderland Community
Springboard

07/08/2026

Recent visits across the ward have focused on keeping our green spaces clean, safe and welcoming during the busy summer holidays. At Ford Quarry (SSSI), no fly-tipping or anti-social behaviour was found, with only minor litter collected. The repaired access gate on Keelman Lane also appears to be helping deter fly-tipping.
At St Luke's Neighbourhood Trust, three bags of litter were removed from the front yard, and plans are in place to continue maintaining the church grounds and nursery area.
Hylton Road Playing Fields continue to receive regular inspections, with litter, fly-tipping and fire pits removed. Damaged playground mats have also been cleared following repairs. Increased use of local parks has brought more litter, but regular visits are helping keep these popular spaces clean, tidy and enjoyable for everyone.
Sunderland CommunityCommunities Together Sunderland West RAPallion Action GroupLuke's Centre Pallion
Springboard

03/08/2026

This week has been a lot of hard work in focused areas.

Hylton Road playing fields and the Secret Garden has seen overgrowth and plantation running wild due to the more than favourable weather conditions. This has led to us organising focused strimming in areas where ASB is prominent.
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With the football season starting up again, the playing fields has seen a lot of people playing across the goal posts. This is great to see; however, a lot of litter and plastic water bottles are being left behind. This has been cleared and disposed of.

As well as the litter, the forest walk has become overgrown and sight lines are covered which has led to ASB, firepits and fly tipping. We have made a start by cutting back the sight lines with plans to clear the entire overgrowth along the treeline in the near future.

On top of this, There has been a lot of dog poo bags left on tree's and bushes for owners to 'pick up on the way back'. Please make sure you take your dogs poo with you and use one of the many bins on the way out of the park, Thanks.
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Work within the community has been at the Secret Garden. This work consisted of supporting David to create a pebbled garden path along the outside of the gardens edge. We began by removing old weeds and thistle to create clear foundations to lay membrane and pebbles down.

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West Sunderland Community
Lambton Street Youth and Community Hub

23/07/2026

There has been a lot of work carried out over the past couple of weeks. I have carried out requests from councillors, and I am beginning to work with members of the community to help maintain grounds and support in upkeep of their more public areas.

One of these areas has been Luke's Centre Pallion. I have worked alongside, Lian, and supported in the maintenance of their garden area out front. Future plans are in place to keep this area well looked after whilst looking clean and green.

There has been more graffiti popping up along European way and the connecting streets. I have gotten rid of almost all graffiti and tags. I will continue to wipe these clear and keep the area looking Clean

Some residents had noted that Merle Terrace and the streets joining, were beginning to look a little tarnished with rubbish and litter. I carried out a litter walk around the joining streets, the bank that overlooks Pallion retail park and Pallion subway back onto Merle Terrace.

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West Sunderland Community
Springboard
Luke's Centre Pallion

10/07/2026

A huge thanks and well done to all involved in last weekend’s Barnes Park Event! It was a pleasure to take part in Clean and Greens workshop alongside West Area Clean and Green - Community Opportunities. Together we led a total of 12 workshops for school groups of all ages! It’s fair to say they are looking forward to taking care of the bee’s and helping plants grow to promote more pollination!
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Throughout this week, I have been focusing on clearing St Luke's Terrace of litter and giving planter boxes a new lease of life. Some of the planter boxes along this street are looking worse for wear. Plans are in place to mend the outer rim and add some new vegetation over the coming weeks.
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Along St Luke's Road, there was a lot of litter and rubbish being blown along from St Luke's Terrace, this was getting caught in shrubbery and garden fences along the road. With the help of volunteers, we did a litter walk and managed to fill 4 bags full of litter!
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Finally, there has been a lot of noticeable graffiti popping up on directional signs across the ward. This can be a busy area for learner drivers as there are lots of different signs and road markings to help them understand the road. This has since been wiped away and helped keep directions around the ward clear and concise for all drivers to navigate safely.

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Springboard West Sunderland Community West Area Clean and Green - Community Opportunities

29/06/2026

Good Morning!

Last week was a big one for Fly tipping and burnt out rubbish!

A walk along Keelman's way found quite a lot of litter and rubbish. This was disheartening to see, however, all fly tipping and litter was collected and a whole 8 bags disposed of!

On a journey through Blackie park, I noticed a few areas of overgrown tree lines where it looks as though some ASB has been taking place, this has since been cleared and plans are being created to figure out how to clear sight lines and deter this behaviour in the future.

It looks as though we're in for another hot week, so get yourself along to all of our beautiful parks and soak it all up.

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West Sunderland Community
Springboard

17/06/2026

Good Afternoon,

I'm Joe, the new ranger for the clean and green project in Pallion. Over the past weeks I have been working alongside other members of the team to ensure Pallion is free from litter and rubbish.

More recently, I have been working in co-ordination with Groundwork to clean and refurbish the car park at St Mary Magdalene Church along the old Millfield boundary.

You may also have noticed the planter boxes along St. Lukes road becoming wild and full of litter. I have begun to clear weeds and rubbish to allow some of the beautiful seasonal flowers to flourish with the ideal weather we're currently having.

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West Sunderland Community Springboard