Pupils at a Perthshire primary school have launched a crusade to help protect the planet.

The primary five and six class at Robert Douglas Memorial School in Scone have been inspired by pupils at Sunnyside Primary in Glasgow, who started a ‘Nae Straw At A’’ campaign to raise awareness about plastic waste.

Groups in the class have focussed on different issues related to cutting down waste.

Each group has written an article on their chosen subject which has went on the school’s intranet system.

One group is focussing on plastic coffee cups.

The five girls, who call themselves the Coffee Cup Soldiers, want to persuade big outlets in Scone to ditch plastic coffee cups and offer a discount to customers who bring their own disposable cups.

They have even started their own Twitter hashtag – #CoffeeCupCrazy – and will put posters around the schools to raise awareness.

Kimberly Shiels (10), a member of the group, said: “We hope you have thought about this and what the impact will be if we don’t take action.”

Another group called the Junk Mail Warriors want to prevent people receiving unwanted junk mail which simply goes to waste.

The girls made signs to raise awareness of the fact residents can ask the Post Office not to send them junk mail and are asking charities to send out bags every two months instead of every month.

Residents can connect with the girls on social media using the hashtag #LetUsInTheDoor.

Cara Thomson, a member of Junk Mail Warriors, said, “I want the companies to use the internet instead of mail, for example make videos and post them online.”

The problem of plastic in our oceans and on beaches has been in the news recently and that has inspired the Plastic Crushers group.

As their name suggests they hope to cut down the amount of plastic used. Plastic often finds its way into the water system and can be extremely harmful to marine life.

Simple steps like not using plastic plates when out in a restaurant could make a big difference, according to the group.

Leo Alexander, ​a pupil from P5/6, said: “Talk to the shops you go to most often and talk about their plastic waste and try get them to stop selling unrecyclable plastic like some packaging.”

Primary five pupil Drew Cockburn added: “Whenever people get plastic bottles to drink out of, many people put it in the bin when they’re finished. They just waste it but they could just keep using the same bottle instead and use it repeatedly.”

Oil down drains is the inspiration for the fourth group, Oil Isn’t a Toil. Using the slogan “Oil is pain for the drain” and their hashtag is #EasyGreasy, the boys want to highlight oil recycling as an alternative to pouring used oil down the drain.

They are urging residents to go to oil recycling points at Sainsbury stores, where it can be collected and turned into biodiesel.

Rhys Fong (10) commented: “Oil that is poured down the drain collects together and forms blockages in the sewage system. It is expensive for the water companies to remove these and this cost is paid by parents and other taxpayers.”

Finally, the fifth group wants to cut down on school dinner plastic, such as cups, pots and plastic cutlery. They are looking to places like Germany for inspiration, where fruit can be served in a wafer plate that can be eaten.

Class teacher Fraser Boyd said: “The kids have been quite motivated by it.

“It’s been good for them to go and actually visit the local businesses and they have got some really good responses. Paco’s showed some o the boys how they recycle vegetable oil and the Spar put up a poster.

“People have been receptive to their message. We said to them it was not enough to go out and tell people what they are doing is wrong but they need to explain the alternatives.”

In addition to the project, the class was involved with other classes to raise nearly £200 for Perth Autism Support with an upcycling sale.