LITTER picking in Northway was far from a waste of time according to volunteers.

Members of residents groups on the Tewkesbury estate had put tidying it up high on their list of priorities.

So Anna Jennings, a new support worker on the estate, combined with the Count Me In! health team and Severn Vale Housing Society arranged a litter pick and fun community day at The Gould Playing Field.

Anj Patel, activities officer for Count Me In!, said: "We had 10 people take part in the litter pick in the morning. They filled four bags of rubbish from the field and then went around surrounding areas such as Oak Drive. They collected 12 bags of rubbish in all."

Afternoon events enabled people to haul themselves up a climbing wall, take part in arts and craft sessions and eat healthy snacks.

Anj said: "We had more than 200 people there. It was a great success and community spirit was really high."