NEW recycling bags will be handed out to residents as part of a bigger initiative by the council to reduce the amount of waste we throw away.

From today, villages in the Ulverston area such as Pennington, Great Urswick and High Carley will be given blue bags to store reusable items such as plastic bottles, tin cans and cardboard.

The latest expansion of services follows on from roll-outs of the plastic and card service in Kendal and Ulverston.

It's anticipated that in the coming months more than 50 per cent of the district will be receiving plastic and cardboard recycling collection services.

South Lakeland District Council aims to have the whole district covered by March 2017.

To support the growth in the number of homes being issued with reusable bags, the council have also commissioned a new fleet of vehicles who will visit the remote villages where the bags have been handed out.

A leaflet outlining which container should be used for each material will also be given to homeowners at the same time as the blue bags.

Villages which will receive their blue bags on Thursday July 7:-

Pennington, High Carley, Birkrigg and Daisy Hill.

Villages which will receive their blue bags on Friday July 8:-

Great Urswick, Little Urswick, Stainton and Mascalles.

The following streets will get their blue bags at a later date:-

Little Urswick – Neales Row, Craglands Park, Weint Lane

Stainton – Gleaston Lane, Sunny Bank