Norfolk boy's beach litter mission backed by wind farm workers

Theo with a piece of rope he found on Hemsby beach during a litter-pick event

A 10-year-old boy has teamed up with an off-shore wind farm operator to clean his local beach for the Easter holidays.

Theo, who lives near Hemsby, started picking up rubbish and bits of fishing net from the beach when he was five.

He became upset after seeing how plastics and waste in the sea can harm seals and other wildlife.

Over the weekend staff from Vattenfall - which is building wind farms off the Norfolk coast - joined him.

Theo, who has growth and developmental delay, won the Individual award in CBBC's The Regenerators in 2022 for his efforts to keep the beach, near Great Yarmouth, clean.

Saturday's mission was to cover Hemsby beach north and south of The Gap and the dunes.

He and his mum Hannah said they collected 72kg (158lb) of waste, including a piece of rope and net which weighed 13kg (28lb).

Theo said he wanted to protect "seals and other wildlife that live in the sea" and urged to use litter bins.

In all, 18 bags of rubbish were collected and among the waste was an old typewriter, bits of cable and a pair of car number plates.

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Hannah said: "Theo got the award for young person of the year with the EDP Stars of Norfolk [because of his litter picking] and Vattenfall actually sponsored his award.

"They were so impressed with his work that they wanted to collaborate and get some litter picking done and expand the work that Theo is doing around the county."

A team of workers from the energy generation firm Vattenfall joined Theo and his friends for a litter pick

Denise Hone, community engagement manager for Norfolk Offshore Wind Zone, said: "We were blown away by Theo's work and commitment and wanted to do our bit to support the fantastic work he does for the environment on our beaches."