Goodmayes had a spring clean on Friday when a team of volunteers took to the streets to tackle litter, graffiti and other nuisances.

Councillor Ali Hai, who organised the walkabout, said: “We had a really good walk around Goodmayes.

“I was joined by councillors from planning, cleansing, GRASS members and residents.”

The team collected 10 bags of litter, tidied up 50 front gardens and took the details of 12 planning breaches, including a garage operating illegally.

Goodmayes Residents’ Association chairman Keith Stanbury was also on the walkabout.

He said: “I think it was good for people to see members of the community helping them, some people thought we were council workers.

“We saw some very encouraging signs with people keeping gardens tidy and so on.”

The next clean-up is expected to take place around the end of July.