As the political, regal, business and social heartbeat of the UK, and with a resident population of over 220,000 and over one million visitors a day, the City of Westminster is probably the most prestigious region in the whole of the United Kingdom, and arguably of Europe.

Within its 8.3 square miles Westminster takes in Regent’s Park to the north, Hyde Park to the west, and Covent Garden to the east. To the south it follows the River Thames from Temple to Pimlico.

Some of the capital’s most esteemed landmarks and districts fall within Westminster’s boundaries, including Buckingham Palace, Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament and Palace of Westminster, Westminster Abbey, Piccadilly Circus and Leicester Square, Oxford Street and Regent Street, Mayfair and Soho, Belgravia and Knightsbridge, Marble Arch and Trafalgar Square.

Veolia Environmental Services has a seven-year contract with Westminster City Council and operates a unique 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year service within the City of Westminster, meeting and exceeding the challenges that a 24/7/365 city which generates over 200,000 tonnes of waste a year brings. This is done through a combination of waste and recycling collections, street cleansing and award-winning maintenance of the world famous Regent’s Park.

We have also regained the waste collection and street cleansing contract with the Greater London Authority (GLA) for services to Parliament and Trafalgar Squares for a further three years (with an option to extend for another two years). This also incorporates grounds maintenance on Parliament Square and the toilet facilities on Trafalgar Square.

Special Events
The list of special events that we are involved in throughout the year are too numerous to list in full, but some of the key, high-profile events are detailed below:

New Year’s Eve
As thousands of weary revellers start making their way home after ringing in the New Year, over 200 of our dedicated staff get to work, performing the considerable around-the-clock challenge of cleaning the streets of the borough, both manually and mechanically, and returning them to their usual high standards. This ensures that at least the streets aren’t suffering from any hangover from the night before! Operations begin shortly after midnight and last until the morning.

The London Marathon
Every year hundreds of thousands of people line the streets of the capital cheering on those taking part in the 26.2 mile London Marathon, part of which takes place within Westminster’s boundaries as the runners make their way along the Embankment and turn up past the Houses of Parliament.

Unsurprisingly, given the vast numbers of participants and viewers of the event, a lot of waste is generated. Our teams work long hours to first of all prepare the streets, then to clean them up after the huge crowds have dispersed.

In 2007, we helped Westminster City Council recycle more than 50,000 plastic bottles used by the runners.

The Tour de France
In 2007, for the first time in the event’s 100-year history, the Tour de France came to London, featuring a heavy presence in Westminster over three days in early July.

The opening ceremony and procession of the riders and teams was held in Trafalgar Square on the Friday and our teams were on hand to clear all the waste generated by the crowds.

The Prologue of the race, which determines who wears the coveted yellow jersey, took place on the Saturday, covering 7.9km all within Westminster’s borders. We were responsible for cleaning all of the streets (not including Hyde Park) that the race took place on and 80 staff were deployed throughout what became a 14 hour day!

Sunday was ‘Le Grand Départ’, commencing Stage One of the gruelling 3,550km challenge. The route started where the Prologue finished, on The Mall, before working its way through Admiralty Arch and down to the Thames, passing the Houses of Parliament before crossing Westminster Bridge and leaving the borough. We had additional staff on hand throughout the day, clearing up after the riders and subsequently the crowds after they had departed from the Westminster section of the race route.

Sponsorships
Veolia Environmental Services in Westminster is a keen sponsor of several notable events in the borough, including West End Live, the Oxford Street Christmas Lights and the Regent Street Festival. We also support many local residents associations.