A Ramsbottom resident who signed a pledge to recycle more received a surprise reward.

Kathleen Morrison, along with 125 other residents, was entered into a free draw when they attended the recent Ramsbottom Chocolate Festival and took the "Recycle more for Bury" pledge, which aims to urge people to recycle as much as they can.

The winner was drawn at the festival and the prize, a giant Easter egg, donated by Bury Council’s recycling awareness team and created by Slattery’s of Whitefield, was branded Recycle 60% for Bury.

People who take the pledge also agree to a range of other ‘green’ actions, including only using their grey rubbish bin for waste they cannot recycle, recycling all the right items in the correct bin, and not using plastic bags in any of their recycling bins.

The recycling awareness team were present at the festival to promote food waste recycling and offering residents advice and practical tips on how to make it part of their daily life.

The team was joined by celebrity chef Richard Fox who promoted the Love Food Hate Waste campaign on behalf of Recycle for Greater Manchester.

Richard entertained visitors with cookery displays that used common leftovers to make pesto and tomato sauces for pasta dishes and pizzas.

Especially for the Chocolate Festival, he showed how to make a chocolate orange pudding.

Glenn Stuart, head of waste management at Bury Council, said: “Helping residents to make food waste recycling a part of their daily life and increasing food waste recycling is a priority for the recycling team at present, so the chocolate festival provided a great platform for them to do just that.”

All residents that take the Recycle more for Bury pledge are given the chance to win one of two £50 shopping vouchers donated by The Rock.

To take the pledge: go to www.bury.gov.uk/recycling-pledge.

* Residents who want to request a free kitchen caddy and liners or want to upsize their 23-litre or 140-litre brown bin, free of charge, can do so at www.bury.gov.uk/requestabin.