Volunteers from Preston’s sacred Hindu place of worship braved the rain to help clean and rejuvenate the Broadgate neighbourhood, as part of the ‘Great British Spring Clean’ campaign.

The group from BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir on Pramukh Swami Place, Off Gerrard Street, filled more than 25 bags with various items of litter, helping to improve the environment.

They were joined by the Mayor of Preston, Councillor Yakub Patel who was ‘impressed by their drive to help the neighbourhood.’

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He said: “I really appreciate this organisation is taking responsibility in keeping Britain tidy and it shows that this type of work is to inspire, educate and enable everyone in the community to value the environment on their doorstep.”

The initiative is part of the nation’s biggest mass-action environmental campaign, organised by ‘Keep Britain Tidy’ an independent environmental charity, celebrating its 70th anniversary this year. 

The charity works to inspire, educate and enable everyone in the country to value the environment on their doorstep.

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Hema Patel, a volunteer at the temple, added, “His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj, the global spiritual leader of the BAPS Hindu fellowship and the inspirer of the Mandir teaches us to respect and care for the environment and to serve our local communities as a part of our social responsibility. 

“Seeing so many volunteers come together for such a worthy cause is a testimony of the community spirit between the temple and its neighbours and demonstrates the transformative power and impact of collective action.

“We would also like to congratulate Keep Britain Tidy for its tremendous work over the past 70 years and look forward to supporting their community projects in the future.”

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Leader of Preston City Council, councillor Matthew Brown also said he was delighted to see the volunteers take part in the city this year.

He said: “This selfless act from our Hindu community shows the brilliant contribution they continue to make sure Prestonians live in a more pleasant world.”

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