Tidy Up Tooting hopes to repeat the success of cleaning up Bickley Street when they meet next week.

At the end of September the group came together with the aim of doing something, no matter how small, to help Tidy Up Tooting and make it a better place to live.

The group, including Tooting MP Sadiq Khan and Coun Andy Gibbons, tackled the alley way off Bickley Street in Tooting which has been used by fly-tippers as a dumping ground.

The volunteers set to work on the heap of rubbish and after just 45 minutes had removed two fridges, a TV and a toilet.

They also filled 36 bags with general rubbish as well as 10 bags of discarded bottles and cans for recycling.

One resident whose flat backs onto the alley said: “I've seen vans come down here a few times, dumping waste in the alley. Once I hired a van to remove it myself but they just come back and do it again.”

Despite the best efforts of the council, areas of Tooting, particularly Totterdown Street, have become renowned for dumped commercial and residential waste.

But Tidy Up Tooting now plan to contact the council to discuss the possibility of putting a gate at the entrance to the alley way to prevent this happening again.

Mr Khan said: “Local residents, local businesses and Wandsworth Council all have a role to play in keeping Tooting tidy. Last Sunday saw the start of a movement to restore pride in our environment.

“I look forward to seeing this movement flourish, and I will support it every step of the way.”

Local residents are invited to the next meeting of Tidy Up Tooting on Monday October 13 at 7.30pm at the Long Room pub on Mitcham Road.

The group will then decide on the next black spot to tackle. You can also get involved by joining the online forum at groups.google.co.uk/group/tidy-up-tooting/