A £30,000 fund is being set up to help people trying to boost recycling and cut waste in York.

The “Community Recycling Fund” is set to be rubber stamped by city council executive member Andrew Waller, at a decision meeting on September 5.

The fund aims to support grass-roots groups looking to help make York the greenest city in the north.

Cllr Waller, who is responsible for environmental matters at City ofYork Council, will be asked to approve the details and eligibility criteria for the new fund. It was first agreed by ruling councillors in June.

In a report prepared for Cllr Waller, the council’s assistant director for communities Charlie Croft said they currently recycle 43 per cent of the York’s household waste.

In previous years the council used a lot of generic messages through leaflets, roadshows, door knocking and online campaigns to encourage people to recycle.

They now want to find specific ideas and projects that can target particular groups or issues.

Mr Croft wrote: “York’s communities will have ideas that are appropriate to York’s particular needs.”

Community projects could help cut the amount of waste that goes into landfill, by ideas like teaching sewing skills so people can repair and reuse clothes and textiles, teaching cooking to reduce food waste, specific projects for black and minority ethnic communities, and improving composting and rain water collection at allotment sites.

If approved, the £30,000 fund will give out grants to community groups, charities, faith groups, schools, parish councils or other not-for-profit groups.

The money will be used for anything that can help cut the amount of waste going into grey or green bins - or help people who do not get green bin collections - as well as anything that increases recycling, encourages reuse or repair, cuts carbon emissions, or reduces food waste.

Projects must be shown to be practical and workable, and priority will be given to things that are good value and will change people’s behaviour. Strict criteria are likely to be set stopping the grants being used for day-to-day running costs like wages, or from funding projects where the council is already responsible for getting rid of the waste.