KEEPING it clean and tidy has paid dividends for children at South Cross Street library in Bury.

They have been able to use the garden, which they renovated, for outdoor reading during the summer holidays.

And now they have moved on to tidy the street outside and raising awareness in the community of the local environment.

They spent the last fortnight reading up on recycling and how to reduce rubbish by making useful objects out of it. Their work has been on display in the library, and they are also designing posters to encourage people to take their litter home or bin it.

This venture is part of the BRAIN project, which is backed by Bury Council and the Children's Fund.

Jean Lonsdale, library outreach worker, and Sajaad Mahmood, dual language support worker, have jointly led the project.

Jean said: "It is wonderful that the children are taking such a pride in their community. The library has helped by providing books to expand their knowledge of litter awareness and recycling. We have also purchased books on crafts which use recycled materials and rubbish to create works of art and useful objects."

Older girls who meet at the library on Monday evenings will be taking part in a workshop and litter-pick on Monday which will be led by Sheridan Hilton from Groundwork at Link House, Bury.