SPONSORS are desperately needed to help expand a community recycling project in Herefordshire.

The volunteer-run schools recycling project initially began in Hereford city, but interest has been so great, that it quickly expanded to cover the entirety of the county.

The scheme is the brainchild of Herefordshire Community Clean Up group founder, Andrew Wood, who believes that education plays a very important part in tackling litter.

"My idea was to ask a business to sponsor a school. The fee that the business paid would pay for four coloured recycling bins and allows us to make regular visits to the schools to empty them," Mr Wood said.

"We currently have 27 schools involved and another 20 or so wanting to join."

The schools in the scheme choose what they want to recycle from a list of goods, and an enormous amount of rubbish has already been diverted from landfill through the efforts of the children.

"Nearly every school has chosen to recycle crisp packets as one of their items, and we have now recycled over 70,000 packets since January. This means they are saved from both landfill and incineration while at the same time helping to raise money for Hereford County Hospital's Born Sleeping appeal.

"But to help us complete our aim of involving every nursery, primary and secondary school in Herefordshire, we need many more businesses and individuals to join the scheme and help with local recycling in Herefordshire.

"So far, the Wye Valley Group, Transport for Wales, Halo Leisure, TPG Disable Aids, Kingstone Food and Wine and Dunelm are amongst those involved, but we really are desperate for more to come forward, so we can really get the project moving."

For more information, to become a sponsor or to contact the group, visit the Hereford Community Recycling Raising Money For Local Charities Facebook group here.