In celebration of Her Majesty's 90th birthday, the Clean for the Queen campaign is calling on individuals, volunteer groups, local councils, businesses and schools to do their bit for Queen and Country. This is a fantastic opportunity to bring local communities together for a spot of good old fashioned tidying up, as well as to pay tribute to Her Majesty's lifetime of service in support of our nation.

Alongside members of #TeamLeadsom I was thrilled to be joined by the wonderful Councillor Alice Ord, who represents Brackley South on South Northamptonshire Council, at St. James Lake. Armed with litter pickers, plastic bags and wholly inappropriate footwear, we put ourselves to work in cleaning up the area and bagging up rubbish. It was refreshing to see that, in an area known for its litter problems, there was very little to clean up for once... although it did mean that our bags were not very full by the end!

I had a lovely time doing my share on what was a beautiful afternoon in Brackley, and I am encouraged by the planned events for Clean for the Queen all across South Northamptonshire. I hope that everyone can get behind this great idea, led by Country Life and supported by Keep Britain Tidy and the Garfield Weston Foundation, and we can both improve our local areas and give the Queen a jolly good 90th birthday!