Picnicking hordes who can’t be bothered to clear up mess

Published: 2 July, 2010

• HIGHBURY Fields is renowned as the largest open space in Islington, an amenity to be enjoyed by all during the summer months.

Now that the latest heatwave is upon us, however, we are again treated to the unedifying state that this wonderful park is left in by visitors after a hot weekend. 

If anyone doubts the reputation of this country for its unhygienic and litter-scattering habits, let them come to Highbury Fields the morning after a Saturday or Sunday when the sun’s been shining.

Piles of litter are left all over the grass by the picnicking hordes who can’t be bothered to clear up their mess and put it in the numerous litter bins dotted around the Fields, to say nothing of the many black patches of burnt grass left as a reminder of a barbecue tin placed directly on the ground, burning the undergrowth. 

One wonders what sort of lives are led by the people responsible for this detritus, people who obviously don’t give a damn about spoiling the enjoyment of others or about their environment.

Council workers are deployed to clear up this appalling mess when they could and should be doing other things around the borough. 

Employing park wardens on hot weekends to make sure that certain members of the public comply with the most basic forms of social behaviour is an unnecessary expense for the council at these times of cutbacks.

Maybe the answer is to leave the rubbish uncollected until the next hot weekend comes around, so that the perpetrators will return to be greeted by their own squalor left over from their last visit to the Fields.

Along with hay fever and uncomfortable sleepless nights, it’s one of the reasons I find it hard to enjoy Highbury-style summers.

DANNY MICHELSON
La Fromagerie
Highbury Park, N5