As Students approach the end of the 2010-2011 academic year, thousands of them will be leaving the city to go home for their summer break. During student change over, many students look to dispose of items which they no longer need. Liverpool Guild of Students, Liverpool Students Union and Liverpool City Council have teamed up to launch the Leave Liverpool Tidy project to address this need and have a positive environmental impact on the city.

Leave Liverpool Tidy is a student-led reduce, reuse, recycle project aiming to limit the amount of reusable items which go to landfill as a result of the large number of students who move out of rented accommodation during the summer months. 

It is running this May and is a partnership between Liverpool Guild of Students, Liverpool Students Union and Liverpool City Council, involving several organisations across Merseyside.  Following the distribution of bags in student areas and the establishment of donation points in appropriate locations, residents will be encouraged to donate reusable items that might otherwise be left out as rubbish.  These will then be collected and sorted, and made available in free shops for those who do want and need them.

Through minimising the amount of otherwise recyclable goods that go to landfill, the project works to increase sustainability in the city, remove unnecessary costs and amend the negative image often attributed to students, hoping to improve relations between students and the wider community as a consequence.

Monday 6^th June sees the official launch event and will be followed by a series of free shops held at Liverpool Guild of Students on Mount Pleasant, from 7-10^th June. There will be further community free shops in a variety of venues in the targeted wards of Greenbank and Princes Park during the week after.  Donation to shelters, hostels and refuges is also a key aim.

The project provides plenty of opportunities for volunteering, including the management of free shops and the sorting of donations.

For more details or to volunteer please contact Project Coordinator Kim Cooper at leavelpooltidy@liv.ac.uk or visit our facebook page: Leave Liverpool Tidy.