Bill Sinfield, back row, last on right, with the collections team

DURING a 40-year career, Bill Sinfield has found car keys and murder weapons in storm drains, engagement rings in potato peelings and even – sadly – bodies in bins.

“I’ve swept I would say nigh-on every road in the borough,” said Mr Sinfield, 62, who joined Islington’s recycling and rubbish collection services as a road sweeper four decades ago and now manages the many teams that keep our streets clean.

“We had one person that disposed of £10,000 in cash mistakenly in a carrier bag. It was never recovered because they didn’t realise it until the week later.

“There was an incident many years ago, it was just round the back of Hanley Road, and unfortun­ately a young chap got stabbed to death.

“They called me out on Saturday evening and I found the knife down a storm drain – the police were very happy.”

These stories speak to the more dramatic moments of the job, but refuse collectors perform an essential and generally unsung public service day in, day out, whatever the weather – something Islington Council is trying to highlight as part of a new campaign to boost recycling in the borough.

Mr Sinfield added: “We’ve had incidents where people have had dementia and they’ve been wandering around the road, and the crew have called the police and supported them. “Little things like that happen day to day – this is a service which is so important but it’s very much in the background for a lot of people.”

Explaining the new campaign, Councillor Rowena Champion, Islington’s environment chief, said: “The most important thing is to reduce waste, but obviously we know there will always be some material that gets generated, so it’s making sure that we capture as much of the recyclable material as we possibly can.

“My hope for this campaign is that recycling and the reason for it becomes part of everybody’s DNA.”

Recycling rates have been falling in recent years, and “contamin­ation” – where residents wrongly mix non-recyclables and recyclables together – is on the up.

An electric refuse collection truck saves on emissions

The council has recently invested £2million to improve recycling on estates – making sure there are clear signs and enough bins in the right places – but the new campaign will go further still to raise awareness, inclu­ding by “introducing” some of the bin-collectors themselves on social media.

“People say, ‘oh, we never see street cleaners’. Yes, because they’re here at six o’clock in the morning! It’s making that much more personalised,” added Cllr Champion.

This speaks to the idea that residents might not separate their rubbish when they assume that “someone, somewhere” will sort it out.

But if they put a face and name to that “someone”, they might be more likely to put their waste in the right places.

Vince Culletto is another long-standing member of the collection team with 20 years under his belt. He commutes to Islington from his home in Hertfordshire every day.

“I’ve done every­thing,” he said.

“The only job I haven’t done is the scarab” – the bristled vehicle that cleans the road – “and sweeping”.

When people don’t recycle properly it’s usually for simple reasons, Mr Culletto explained – the bin being too far from their front door or not having the right bags.

The council is trying to address these barriers too, giving out food caddies and recycling bags through community groups and on doorsteps while try­ing to raise awareness about how and why it is important to recycle.

Cllr Champion said: “There is something really important about making people feel that actually what they do makes a difference. Because often people think that it doesn’t matter. But actually, it really really does.”

A “Protect the Planet Fun Day” will be held at the Jean Stokes Community Centre, Carnoustie Drive, N1 0DX, on 15 June from 2-5pm to encourage residents to reuse and recycle, with crafting, toy repairs and other free activities.