York’s ‘Don’t Be A Tosser’ campaign goes viral all over again – after TV stars back it on Twitter
The stars have come out in support of York’s blunt-speaking anti-litter campaign.
As news reports of parks and beauty spots being blighted by rubbish come in from around the country, the ‘Don’t be a tosser!’ posters have been going viral all over again.
When City of York Council first put them up last summer they enjoyed huge amounts of love.
And yesterday Robert Rinder – host of the popular TV series Judge Rinder – tweeted out a picture of one of the signs, with the message:
At the time of writing, it had been retweeted more than 3.3K times – including by former England footballer and Match Of The Day presenter Gary Lineker.
And it has received 20.7K likes.
The same picture has also been shared by Instagram favourite, The Archbishop of Banterbury. He has 3.3m followers – and his take on the same theme had more than 74K likes:
‘We were brave to use the T-word’
Council leader Keith Aspden told YorkMix: “We had all enjoyed the beautiful litter-free landscape of lockdown, and as first lockdown restrictions were lifted and businesses reopened, we wanted to get in early and set a standard and an expectation of respect for the city.
“We’re a city built on change having continuously adapted since the Romans arrived. Finding new ways to prompt behaviour change as Covid restrictions were lifting seemed the right thing to do.
“Understandably people wanted to meet up and enjoy themselves: who wouldn’t in our spectacular city? Many were great at social distancing and we wanted the new ways of adapting to rules to include awareness of littering.
“What was needed was a high-impact campaign to grab people’s attention and make sure not only that our city is kept clean but that we can also have something to smile at during what was a very difficult time for many.
“Inspired by work in New Zealand, Australia and Keep Britain Tidy, we were brave and used the T word. Although we were careful to nuance the language so as not to cause offence.
“After the entirely unacceptable scenes of littering we seen across the country as well as in our city as restrictions begin to ease, it’s no surprise people are keen to send a very simple message to those few acting inappropriately.
“The campaign has surpassed our expectations by going global: entirely on the momentum of others’ advocacy. Partners have used it as editorial and we have shared the posters with other local authorities and interest groups to use in their own areas.
“Seeing the social media support for the message, and the way it’s been delivered, has been very encouraging. It’s a simple message and we’re happy to see that so many people want to encourage good and safe behaviours.
“Our initial evaluation of its impact has been entirely positive: not only has it helped to spread a crucial message but we’ve also had lots of wonderful feedback from all around the world, from our partners and other local authorities.
“For York, at the heart of the message lies our beautiful city and our residents: we all want to enjoy the city, particularly now that we can meet our friends and hopefully soon once again visit the places we love, but we don’t want people to be ‘tossers’: take your litter back home and don’t leave a dangerous eyesore for others to clean up.”