HOMES in Ramsbottom are to be targeted as part of Bury Council's drive to boost recycling figures right across the borough.

The council is launching a spring campaign involving 28,000 homes in a new phase of its doorstep recycling scheme.

The alternate weekly collection scheme will start in Prestwich early next month with a further 14,000 homes in Ramsbottom and surrounding areas joining the scheme at the end of the month.

A brown bin scheme for the recycling of garden waste has been up and running since the summer but through additional, fortnightly collections.

From next month, the council will launch the second phase of the scheme -- providing homes with black boxes for residents to recycle 'dry recyclables' such as paper, glass, cans, plastic bottles and textiles.

Residents will now have a recycling collection of items from the brown bin and black box one week and then a collection of non-recyclable 'residual waste' collected in grey or green wheelie bins the following week.

During the next couple of weeks canvassers from the council's Operational Services Team will be out visiting all 28,000 householders on the first stage of the kerbside, black boxes, recycling scheme.