Eco-friendly residents on a Workington estate will be picking up prizes for their recycling efforts next week.

Three Northside households are being handed vouchers at Tesco's Workington store on Wednesday (January 28) after being selected as winners in the "Northside -Purple Bags Mean Prizes" campaign.

Run as a joint venture between Cumbria County Council's waste prevention team and Allerdale Borough Council, the campaign was designed to raise awareness of and launch the purple bag scheme on the Northside estate.

Waste prevention officers from both councils worked with community groups in the area, spoke to people on their doorsteps, and gave out reusable cotton bags.

The purple bag scheme allows people to put glass, cans and plastic bottles in bags that are then collected from the kerbside once every two weeks.

Northside was monitored for a number of collections following the campaign launch and people putting out purple bags were automatically entered into a prize draw.

And the lucky winners will be at Tesco's store in New Bridge Road at 4.30pm on Wednesday (January 28) to collect their prizes.

First prize is a £60 Tesco voucher, second a £40 voucher and third a voucher to the value of £20.

Cumbria County Council's community waste education officer, Mark Buchanan, said: "The campaign in Northside has been a really big success and I'm very pleased that more than 60 per cent of people in the area are now using the purple bags.

"We've also seen an increase in paper bin use of around eight per cent and a reduction in excess waste of 35 per cent in Northside. This all adds up to a significant amount of waste being diverted away from landfill and I hope people will continue with all their good work."

Mark Studholme, Allerdale Borough Council's waste minimisation officer, added: "Cumbria County Council has helped us greatly with the roll out of the purple bag scheme in Northside, ensuring local people understand this and other recycling schemes in Allerdale.

"The campaign has provided a big boost to recycling rates so I'm delighted people in Northside are getting prizes because they are fully deserved."