A National Lottery winning couple joined a group of fellow winners t to help make a difference by collecting litter and plastic waste on the beach.

Ian and Sandra Black, of Carlisle, who won £2M on a scratchcard this year, met the team at Sandsend Beach in Whitby and worked under the guidance of charity The 2 Minute Foundation.

The pair joined numerous other winners from the north east and Yorkshire to support The 2 Minute Foundation, by making a difference through simple acts. 

By removing the litter and plastic debris the lottery winning team helped to protect marine life that the waste could potentially have been fatal too. 

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Claire Giner of The 2 Minute Foundation said: "Sadly there is a huge amount of rubbish floating in our seas and oceans, and every day the tide brings it ashore. 

"Today's litter pick shows what can be achieved in a short space of time and we encourage others to do the same this summer to help save marine animals, even if you can only spare two minutes." 

The National Lottery winners, with a combined wealth of almost £25M, have been playing their role in helping to keep the Yorkshire coast pristine and litter free as the school summer holidays approach. In addition to microplastics, the millionaire litter-pickers collected waste ranging from plastic water bottles and picnic debris, to ocean waste and old fishing ropes. 

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Mr Black said: "Since winning the lottery Sandra and I have loved being able to give time back. One of the great things about winning is this buys you time to support such great causes like The 2 Minute Foundation. 

"As parents we often visit the seaside as a family and love coming to the beach. It has been wonderful working with The 2 Minute Foundation on this project – learning and actually doing something positive for the local environment and for the benefit of local people at the same time."

The 2 Minute Foundation aims to educate people across the country about the coastline, the creatures which inhabit it and what can be done to protect and enhance it.