Beach cleans

Want to help keep the North East Kent coast clean? The Thanet Coast Project has created this advisory page to assist volunteers and groups interested in organising or participating in beach cleans. You can organise your own group beach clean or join an existing event—the more helping hands, the better!

This page offers guidance on how to organise your own clean-up, including how to notify Thanet Council (as the main landowner in the Thanet area) using the form (link below). You can also use this resource to find local organised groups that regularly run beach cleans and to link up with national campaigns.

Organising your own community beach clean: with Notification Link

Community groups can organise their own beach cleans. All you have to do is submit the online application below – which will include all the information required for obtaining landowner permission (Thanet Council Beaches & Coast) & enable you to book out equipment on loan for your beach clean on the Thanet Coast.

Organisers need to submit a

Organised Groups /Beach Clean – Notification Form {link}

Initial Advice and Arrangements:

Contact us (email: thanet.coast@thanet.gov.uk) to discuss initial arrangements, including:
- - - - Beach clean location
      - Landowner permission – to see if we can help for Thanet beaches
      - Date, time, and tides

Requirements Before Completing the Online Form:

You must arrange and confirm the following before submitting the online form:

Risk Assessment:
- - Complete your own beach clean risk assessment. You can use the TDC general Community Clean Up (litter pick) template {link} as a starting point. This must be updated to include any current health advice (eg coronavirus or bird flu measures).
  - Refer to further safety guidelines from the Marine Conservation Society’s Great British Beach Clean {link} and Keep Britain Tidy {link}, and any relevant local Beach Safety Information (eg from the main Bay Information Boards).
Public Liability Insurance:
- - Arrange for and show us proof of your own public liability insurance.
  - Alternatively, you may be able to secure cover by partnering with beach clean organisations (eg Marine Conservation Society’s Beachwatch or Surfers Against Sewage – who may be able to provide cover this through their campaigns).
Equipment and First Aid:
- - Notify us if you need to borrow beach clean equipment (litter sticks, bags, hoops) during the booking process, so we can arrange with you about where to borrow before the event.
  - You must also consider and arrange First Aid cover for your event.
Litter Collection:
- - We will work with you to arrange when and where the filled litter bags will be left for collection (by Thanet Council’s Cleansing team) after your clean-up.

PLEASE NOTE – For INLAND LITTER PICKS in Thanet, please view:

Join a litter pick {link} & use Thanet Council’s online inland Litter Pick Notification form {link}

For the Whitstable & Herne Bay area:

- - you can also register to organise a litter pick with Canterbury City Council {link}

For the Deal and Sandwich area:

- - you can organise a litter pick with help from Dover District Council {link}

Alternatively:

# Join an Organised Group

There are many local voluntary groups running beach cleans around the NE Kent coast, and these are the ones that have let us know of their activities:

CleanupUK – have local hubs Thanet at Ark (Cliftonville), Bon Volks Studio (Dane Park, Margate), Windmill Community Gardens (Cliftonville) Oval Bandstand (Cliftonville), Ellington Park Café (Ramsgate), Newington Community Centre (Ramsgate) and Radford House (Ramsgate)

Birchington Anti-litter Group (BAG) organise regular impromptu litter picks that include the beaches around the area. See their facebook page for more information.

Westgate Town Council have beach & litter clean equipment available for loans to groups wishing to help clean up in the Westgate area (Westgate Against Rubbish WAR)

Rise Up. Clean Up. Margate – regular monthly cleans, and weekly over the summer ( residency link on Instagram)

A Better Cliftonville (ABC) & Walpole Bay Swimmers (WBS).

Palm Bay & Northdown Community Group (private group)

Friends of Botany Bay and Kingsgate – Registered CIC and runs regular beach cleans with local volunteers.

Broadstairs Town Team are running regular beach cleans, as well as work around town. Litter pickers, plastic bags and hoops will be provided, but please note: on these cleans, you are advised to bring your own gloves and wear warm clothing! Please view their Facebook site for location & further details (please use link above).

Ramsgate Town Team; Ramsgate Town Council have various clean up projects and an online group – Ramsgate Litter Pickers (facebook) – as well as campaigns like the Great Spring Clean.

Advice on other cleans in the Ramsgate area – different groups occasionally undertake projects eg Ramsgate Society or Winterstoke Gardens/East Cliff projects

Western Undercliff – Artificial Beach Group, Ramsgate – run clean ups in this part of the Ramsgate coast.

Thanet Coast Project – Also see What’s On (events). Beach Cleans at Pegwell Bay, Cliffsend (CT12 5JD). Joint cleans within the National Nature Reserve with Kent Wildlife Trust. Meet on the beach below the former hoverport access road, Cliffsend.

These clean ups are also run in conjunction with the Marine Conservation Society volunteers – and particularly their annual Great British Beach Clean event in September (part of Beachwatch). All cleans last 2 hours. Next ones in 2026 are:

- - Fri 20 March, 2.30pm: Spring Beach Clean – Pegwell Bay, Cliffsend Part of the Great British Spring Clean (13-29 March 2026, KBT). Please Book: here
  - Thur 25 June, 2pm – Pegwell Bay, Cliffsend Please Book: here
  - Sat 19 Sept, 10am – Pegwell Bay, Cliffsend – Great British Beach Clean Please Book: here
  - Sat 19 Sept, 2pm – Plum pudding, Minnis Bay, Birchington – Great British Beach Clean Please Book: here
  - Fri 4 Dec, 10:30am – Pegwell Bay, Cliffsend Please Book: here

For Whitstable & Herne Bay area:

you can also register to organise a litter pick with Canterbury City Council.

Herne Bay – Bay Beach Clean

Whitstable – Whitstable’s Marine Environment Group – run monthly beach cleans

For Deal and Sandwich area:

you can organise a litter pick with help from Dover District Council.

Deal – Deal With It – run regular beach cleans along the coast in the Deal & Warmer area.

# Link up to a nationally organised campaigns

Marine Conservation Society’s ‘Beachwatch’ (MCS) – join or run your own beach clean task; including linking up to the Great British Beach Clean (the third weekend in September) or organise your own

Keep Britain Tidy (KBT) – run various campaigns eg Great British Spring Clean & The Big Tidy Up.

Surfers Against Sewage (SAS) – run beach clean tasks and have great Spring & Autumn Beach Cleans.

Please Note: What to do - a) Bird Flu and b) Syringes

Please Note:

Bird Flu: Current national advice and guidelines & Kent advice Please be aware and keep a lookout for our wild birds under stress, or dying. Report cases to the local authorities to collect (as they will use PPE gear) for around the East Kent coast:

Thanet District Council: 01843 577000
Dover District Council: 01304 821199
Canterbury City Council: 01227 862000

Syringes: If you find any used syringes, please report to the above local authority – or unsure of the authority, through the national syringe report line.

THANET COAST PROJECT BEACH CLEANS 2026

Fri 20 March, 2.30pm: Spring Beach Clean – Pegwell Bay, Cliffsend Part of the Great British Spring Clean (13-29 March 2026, KBT). Please Book: here

Thur 25 June, 2pm – Pegwell Bay, Cliffsend Please Book: here

Sat 19 Sept, 10am – Pegwell Bay, Cliffsend – Great British Beach Clean Please Book: here
Sat 19 Sept, 2pm – Plum pudding, Minnis Bay, Birchington – Great British Beach Clean Please Book: here

Fri 4 Dec, 10:30am – Pegwell Bay, Cliffsend Please Book: here

Thanks:

This BEACH CLEAN ADVISORY SERVICE, litter sticks, hoops and bags were kick-started with kind support from Seachangers and Southern Water.