The percentage of people recycling in Lambeth has rocketed over the last year, resulting in major savings for the borough.

An average of 81 percent of people now regularly put out orange recycling sacks for collection each week, compared to 44 percent a year ago.

On some rounds as much as 98 percent of residents now regularly recycle.

It has been a year since Lambeth introduced its new waste strategy which made a number of changes to waste and recycling services, including making recycling compulsory.

The changes were introduced to deal with the rising costs of waste disposal and the urgent need to reduce the amount of waste in the borough.

Waste crews are now collecting an extra 26 tonnes of recyclable materials per week, whilst the amount of refuse collected on the same rounds has fallen by an average of 89 tonnes per week.

The council's target was to save £500,000 in the first year, but thanks to residents that saving has been double to over £1 million.

Other changes introduced in the last year include greater encouragement for people to 'home compost' and the introduction of subscription garden waste collections, the extension of the amount of items people can recycle, which now includes plastic pots, tubs and trays and an increase in the number of on-street recycling banks.

Councillor Lorna Campbell, Lambeth Council Cabinet Member for Environment and Sustainability said: "I'd like to say a huge thank you to all our residents for all the efforts they have made to make our first year such an overwhelming success.

"By making small changes to the way we deal with our waste and increasing the amount we recycle, we can make a big difference and not only save money but help the environment too."