HOUSEHOLDERS in Wyre Forest are recycling around a quarter of their waste - a record that outstrips the district's statutory obligation.

The target figure is 18 per cent but with over 24 per cent being recycled, Wyre Forest District Council's waste minimisation officer, Rebecca Robinson, said: "We have come a long way from the eight per cent we were recycling before the recycling scheme started."

She added: "There are still some issues we need to tackle, such as tops being left on plastic bottles and corrugated card being put in with the paper, neither of which we are able to recycle on the kerbside scheme.

"It is a steep learning curve for us and for members of the public."

The amount of material recycled during December reflected an 11 per cent increase, compared with an average month, from 630 tonnes to around 700 tonnes.

Those figures showed a dramatic rise throughout the year, with just 300 tonnes of recycled material - enough to fill about 300 averaged-sized garages - collected during January, 2004.

Councillor Marcus Hart, the council's cabinet member for commercial services, said: "This is a tremendous effort by the public and I would like to take the opportunity to thank them for using the recycling scheme over the festive period."

He added that 2004 had been a "very good year", in terms of recycling, saying: "We are hoping to make 2005 even better by extending the scheme and encouraging more people to take part in the existing scheme."