RUBBISH was all the rage at Shottermill Infant School, where pupils filled an impressive 92 bags for the Recycle with Michael initiative in aid of the Salvation Army, which was flagged up in the Herald.

After spotting the article, several parents asked headteacher Jilly Storey if the school could join in.

The recycling scheme, which is designed especially for primary school-aged children, provides a bank and lots of bags for pupils to take home to their families to fill up with donations.

Mrs Storey said: “This charity project has really helped the children to understand that while we may have outgrown our shoes or clothing, unwanted things are useful to others.

“The school has also recently installed special collection bins, where pupils can bring in old or foreign coins. We have also joined the Big Battery Hunt project and are collecting batteries for recycling. The bin is nearly full after only two weeks.

“The children have learnt more than 20,000 tonnes of batteries end up in landfill sites in the UK each year. That’s as heavy as about 4,000 elephants.”