A sharps or needle sweep is the safe location, removal and disposal of discarded needles, syringes and drug paraphernalia from a site — car parks, stairwells, alleyways, gardens, public toilets and grounds. Discarded sharps are a serious injury and infection risk, so this is skilled, PPE-led work with licensed clinical-waste disposal. Optus Glean UK provides one-off sweeps and scheduled patrols across the UK, fully insured.
Safe location and removal
Operatives systematically search the area — including the hidden spots where sharps collect: behind bins, in planters and grass, in stairwell corners and cubicle voids — and remove each item using approved tools (tongs/grabbers), never by hand, into a UN-approved sharps container.
Compliant disposal
Sharps are hazardous clinical waste. Everything recovered is placed in a compliant sharps bin and disposed of through a licensed clinical-waste route with a full waste-transfer trail you can keep. Nothing goes into general refuse.
One-off sweeps or scheduled patrols
We attend as a rapid one-off after a report, and we also run scheduled sharps patrols for sites with a recurring problem — housing estates, car parks, transport sites, parks and public toilets — so the area is checked and cleared before the public or staff arrive.
Who we do this for
Housing associations and landlords, local authorities and public-sector sites, transport operators, retail and car-park operators, and facilities managers. As a nationwide contractor we can cover multiple sites under one arrangement, with consistent reporting on what was found and removed.