02/04/2008: Pupils recycle cards into a tree

A Brent school which got the recycling habit has won a fruit tree as a reward for its efforts.

Youngsters at St Robert Southwell RC Primary School collected 82.5kg of Christmas cards - filling eight black bin bags - for recycling in January in a scheme supported by Brent Council.

The council's initiative offered to give pupils who collected the most the tree as a prize. St Robert Southwell, Slough Lane, Fryent, pipped their rivals to the post. Pupils planted the tree in school grounds on Friday.

Schools across Brent took part in the initiative, collecting 654.7kg of greetings cards - more than twice as much as in previous years. Recycling is on the up in Brent, and the huge haul of cards is another indicator that more and more people are recycling locally.

St Robert's head Honor Beck said: "It's fantastic to win the tree and for the children to see a reward for their efforts. "We are in the early stages of a programme of getting our children involved in environmental and recycling projects. They were really enthusiastic about collecting the cards and it has also been successful because we could get families involved as well."

Brent Council Waste and Environmental Education Officer Varsha Palm said: "Thanks to everyone who helped collect his record total. Two-thirds of what you throw away can actually be recycled. So why not follow the example set by Brent' s pupils and recycle more - it's easy to do."

Greetings cards were recycled to raise money for the Woodland Trust to preserve Britain's ancient trees and woodlands. This year's prize was donated by Homebase in Dudden Hill. Almost 273kg was collected in cards last year.

The recycling rate in Brent reached 21.7 per cent rate in 2006/07 - but the council has pledged to reach 30 per cent by 2010. It also aims to cut the amount sent to landfill by ten per cent.

Local people wanting to find out more on recycling can call Brent Council on 020 8937 5050 or visit www.brent.gov.uk/recycling