Southampton's business community has launched its latest attempt to enhance the city centre by banishing dirt and grime.

GO! Southampton, the city's Business Improvement District (BID), is sprucing up the area between Bedford Place and High Street by giving street furniture and pavements a deep clean.

The Big City Clean aims to ensure Southampton’s streets are fresh and welcoming for visitors, residents, and businesses alike.

Work is already underway and is set to continue until the middle of April.

Daily Echo: The latest Big City Clean is taking place in Above Bar Street and other parts of the main shopping areaThe latest Big City Clean is taking place in Above Bar Street and other parts of the main shopping area (Image: Lee Peck Media)

Starting in Above Bar Street, the operation will include Portland Terrace, Civic Centre Road, Bargate Street, Commercial Road, London Road, Carlton Place, Winchester Street, and Oxford Street.

All the cleaning will take place early in the morning or late in the evening to prevent daytime disruption.

READ MORE: GO! Southampton praises success of street-cleaning squad

First staged in 2022 with support from the Welcome Back Fund, GO! Southampton is now fully funding the bi-annual clean, ensuring the city is an attractive and enjoyable place to live, work, and visit.

Jade McCauley, operations manager at GO! Southampton, said: “We’re thrilled to be starting 2024 with our Big City Clean once again.

"As well as ensuring people feel safe on our city’s streets, we also want to make sure Southampton is always an inviting place to live, work and socialise.”

Daily Echo: Southampton’s operations manager, Jade McCauley, with Dennis Murphy and Vittoria Gallagher from the city council Southampton’s operations manager, Jade McCauley, with Dennis Murphy and Vittoria Gallagher from the city council (Image: Lee Peck Media)

Cllr Eamonn Keogh, cabinet member for environment and transport, added: "We’re pleased to be working with GO! Southampton to make Southampton a clean and welcoming environment for visitors and residents alike.

"We’re proud of Southampton’s city centre and look forward to seeing these areas looking their best and feeling their safest.

"We encourage residents to roll up their sleeves and do their bit for their local area too."

The Big City Clean is in addition to GO! Southampton's regular cleaning service, which carries out hot washes as well as removing waste and graffiti.

In 2023, GO! Southampton’s cleaning team responded to more than 1,066 cleaning issues reported by its ranger, dealt with more than 530 graffiti and fly-posting incidents, and completed 215 hot washes. They also removed 34 sharp objects, including needles.

In May last year, the team was praised for the way it kept the city centre looking spick and span.

The number of unauthorised posters they removed in 2022 would have exceeded the height of 56 double-decker buses if placed end-to-end in a vertical column. They also carried out 407 street cleans and dealt with 42 fly-tipping incidents.