RESIDENTS on a Darlington housing estate are getting help cleaning up their neighbourhood from a group of talking penguins.
The blue and yellow birds, which arrived in Firthmoor just in time for the snow, are actually rubbish bins which respond when litter is dropped into them.
Neighbourhood manager Sally Forth said: "They have got a sensor at the back of the head and a message says 'thank you for your litter' when rubbish is placed inside. We can pre-record more messages as well. When we talked to people on the estate we identified that litter was a big issue. Hopefully the bins will encourage more people to keep the estate tidy."
The bins, bought by Firthmoor Partnership to support Darlington Borough Council's anti-litter campaign, have been placed outside the community centre and three schools: Firthmoor Primary School, St Teresa's RC Primary School and Dodmire School.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article