Handyman on a mission to spruce up Gloucester for free

A man who cleans road signs and completes paint jobs on public buildings for free says it gives him a lot of satisfaction.

Alan “Big Al” Platt, 68, began clearing up litter in Gloucester during Covid, then teamed up with other volunteers to carry out more tasks in the city.

“I can redo things that haven’t been done for decades and then walk down there and think, ‘I did that’,” he said.

He has repainted black bollards near the Hooper Monument close to Gloucester Cathedral and the golden needles in front of Shire Hall on Westgate.

“We’ve also been down at Alney Island,” said Platt, “and we’ve been working there since about January.

“It’s an area that often floods.

“We got rid of tonnes of deep mud and planted over 400 bulbs and hopefully it’s going to be a blooming spring down there.”

And Platt is not stopping there, he has already got his painting schedule drawn up for 2026.

“I’ve probably done over 40 bollards with black paint. Next year I will do 50-60, the whole of Eastgate Street. I want to do, they’re a mess.

“If we could do 100 in two years, what a remarkable thing that is.

“Anyone who’s got any black paint and they want to give it to me that would be very nice.”

Platt has also teamed up with others, including Tony Aldridge from Gloucester Bid, who has stripped and repainted the gates to the 12th Century St Nicholas Church on Westgate Street.

“They [The Church Conservation Trust] allowed us to strip all the old paint and varnish off which was a long job because the varnish was like tar, then they provided the paint, the original green.

“It was very detailed work to get the nice edging to make them look as they used to be.”

Since the work the church is regularly open and is attracting many more visitors.

Platt says all their work is very satisfying: “I really enjoy it and now I concentrate on making Gloucester beautiful.”