A VERY special bull has been visiting children at schools across the county this week.

The Schools Recycling Project was rolled out by volunteers from Hereford Community Clean Up Group a few months ago.

Participating schools were given four coloured bins, funded by sponsorship from local businesses, and chose what to recycle from a list supplied to them by the group.

But when a surfeit of one item had been collected - around a quarter of a million in just six months, group founder Andrew Wood came up with another plan to ensure they did not go to waste.

Mr Wood said: "We had been collecting plastic bottle tops for the local branch of the National Autistic Society, when they said they had enough, we had to find something else to do with them.

"I asked Ash Roberts, a graduate of Hereford Art College for his help, and he produced an outstanding piece of art.

"I was blown away by what he had designed and built, using entirely reclaimed materials.

The bull has been named William, after Ash’s grandfather, a Hereford cattle Stockman."

Mr Wood contacted all the schools taking part in the recycling project, and asked the children, teachers and adults to write their names on a bottle top to drop into the bull, getting everyone working together to show how many single use bottle tops we use and throw away every day.

The group aim to create a world-record breaking Children’s Tea Party on the Bishops Meadow in May 2020, with bottle-top bulls the stars of the show.

"I aim to have eight bulls all filled with bottle tops grazing on the meadow at the centre of the tea party next May," Mr Wood said.

"After that we will look at where the bulls will end up. It would be a pity to break them up, as they represent Herefordshire at its best, the Hereford bull raising awareness of the over use of single use plastics."

The bulls will also be helping to raise much needed funds for local woman, Sarah Davies, to help her purchase a disability adapted car.

She has raised £10,000 but needs much more to secure her dream. The group are asking adults to donate £1, write their name on a bottle top and drop it off into one of the bulls.

Over the coming months, William and his brothers will be visiting schools and town centres in Hereford, Ledbury, Leominster, Kington, Bromyard and Ross on Wye for fundraising events.

If you'd like to help the project by sponsoring one of the bulls or in any other way, contact Andrew Wood at Herefordshire Community Recycling Raising Money For Local Charity on Facebook