A team of volunteers gave up their Sunday to remove a mountain of bizarre items dumped in the River Colne.

A discarded wooden door and unwanted bike were just some of the bits of waste pulled out of the water by the Halstead River Care team during their monthly clean-up.

Several sacks of rubbish were also discovered by the team, along with broken tyres and a wooden pallet.

Town councillor Eileen Penn, who helped out with this month’s blitz, admits it is disappointing to see the amount of rubbish dumped in Halstead’s waters.

Despite collecting a large amount of waste, Mrs Penn remains upbeat and is calling on residents in the town to get involved and helped keep the River Colne rubbish-free.

She said: “As you can see we retrieved quite a haul. It’s just a shame that we find so much rubbish in and around the river.

“We enjoy what we do and are proud to be part of a team that wants to look after Halstead and keep it looking fantastic.

“We consist of people of all walks of life, such as the mayor and other councillors, school children and their parents, the older generation and everything in between

“We look forward to having new people join us and they are always made welcome – we are a very friendly bunch.”

The volunteers operate on behalf of the Keep Britain Tidy organisation, which has specialist beach and river care sections.

Members meet on the first Sunday of each month in Sainsbury’s car park, Chapel Street, where they begin a two-hour clean up at 10am.

All equipment is provided but those participating are asked to bring wellies, gloves and appropriate clothing for the weather.

To find out how to get involved, search ‘Halstead River Care’ on Facebook.