HAYLEY Bird's Trash Fashion team has created a striking collection for their forthcoming exhibition at Great Yarmouth library - all made out of rubbish picked up from the town's streets and out of skips.

HAYLEY Bird's Trash Fashion team has created a striking collection for their forthcoming exhibition at Great Yarmouth library - all made out of rubbish picked up from the town's streets and out of skips.

Carrier bags, chip cones, Coca-Cola cans, shells, bits of old foam, remnants of scavenged material: items that would challenge even the imagination of a Blue Peter presenter.

Hayley, 24, of New College Close, Gorleston, and her team of 16 to 25-year-olds - working on a project funded by the national, charitable V for Volunteering scheme - were inspired by a Market Place survey they carried out last summer which found the aspect of Yarmouth people liked least was “rubbish on the streets”.

When asked how the resort could be improved, the most common response was “clean the place up”.

Hayley said: “I have always lived in the Yarmouth area and love the town, which has a lot of character. But it was when I was living for a time in King Street, in the centre of town, that I realised how much of a problem rubbish can be.

“We wanted to create fashion that would inspire other people to re-use and recycle things rather than throwing them away. We also wanted our collection to reflect favourite places in Yarmouth like the beach, the Market Place and chip stalls.”

Under the guidance of the town's SeaChange Arts charity, and helped by local visual artist Kate Munro, the 18-strong Trash Fashion team designed, made, modelled and photographed 14 junk outfits.

Hayley, accustomed to wearing far more conservative attire for her job in the handbags and accessories department of Palmers department store, said: “Everything is made from stuff we found or already had at home. We even went up to people in the Market Place and asked them for their empty chip cones.”

Many of the outfits will be going on display in the library on Tuesday, March 23, from 11.30am to 6pm.

The team, who created their collection during a series of creative workshops at Christchurch, in King Street, Yarmouth, will also be inspiring the public at a Trash Fashion Campaign in the town's Market Gates shopping centre, between New Look and Debenhams, from March 15 to March 20.

Shoppers will even be encouraged to make their own trash fashion party headband out of materials including an old headband, party horn, party popper, gift ribbon and super glue.