Sponsorship: McDonald's Litter Picking Hubs

Keep Wales Tidy has a network of community litter-picking hubs across Wales which provide free equipment, guidance and insurance to anyone who wants to carry out a clean up in their locality. Businesses, schools, individuals, community groups and other organisations regularly utilise hubs, loaning the materials so they can safely carry out a litter-pick. Whilst the hubs are a fantastic community resource, enabling thousands of people to get involved at no cost to themselves, they do require significant financial support to set up and maintain.

That’s where McDonald’s came in.

In 2024, McDonald’s sponsored 22 of Keep Wales Tidy’s hubs for the year. This vital financial assistance enabled us to support 17 hubs. The sponsorship money provided:

Regular guidance and advice to hub managers and staff
Training for hub managers (on topics such as reporting systems, health and safety and waste collections)
Insurance cover for volunteer clean ups
Provision of the iconic red bin bags
Assistance with hub promotion

It also enabled Keep Wales Tidy to set up five new community litter-picking hubs in new locations.

Existing community hubs were mapped and then ‘twinned’ with a local McDonald’s restaurant. These partnerships were launched with a local community clean-up with each hub and ‘sponsoring’ McDonald’s restaurant announcing the partnership together. McDonald’s involvement was also talked about on the Keep Wales Tidy website, and sponsored Hubs were pinpointed on our interactive Litter Picking Hub map.

At McDonald’s, we’re committed to being a good neighbour in the communities where we operate, and helping to keep local areas clean and welcoming is a key part of that. We’re proud to support Keep Wales Tidy and their fantastic network of community litter picking hubs, which empower people across Wales to take action in their local areas. Through this partnership, our restaurants have been able to work alongside volunteers and community groups to make a visible, positive difference beyond our restaurant boundaries. We take real pride in playing our part to help keep communities tidy and cared for and look forward to continuing our partnership with Keep Wales Tidy to make a positive difference across Wales.
McDonald's

Was the project worthwhile?

A total of 156 clean-ups were undertaken by the sponsored hubs, involving 1,290 people and removing 1,365 bags of rubbish from the Welsh environment – and that’s what a valuable sponsorship can achieve!

This sponsorship was hugely important in enabling Keep Wales Tidy to continue the all important support that they give to local communities through the provision of these hubs. The money enabled us not only to re-stock existing Hubs with equipment and bin bags, but it also gave the opportunity for us to purchase equipment for the new Hubs.

Our Litter Picking Hub network is a crucial tool in the battle against litter, facilitating thousands of clean ups each year, particularly for groups, schools and companies who do not have their own equipment or need more for larger events. McDonald’s sponsorship helped us to sustain our Litter Picking Hub network and the vital work it enables.

The partnership was also successful for McDonald’s, giving them a focus on which to highlight their commitment to local litter action and give restaurants a perfect opportunity to get involved with volunteers in community clean ups, and to build positive relationships.

These clean ups ventured into the wider community, typically to public spaces which are not routinely cleaned by McDonald’s staff. This was very positively received by locals who often blame McDonald’s for litter issues in their area.

Local volunteers also felt the benefit and were appreciative of McDonald’s staff supporting clean-up events. The free refreshments provided by some restaurants were particularly popular!

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