CHILDREN at a school on the Rame Peninsula are building their own boat from plastic milk bottles – and will sail it themselves in Cawsand Bay next month.

Pupils of Fourlanesend School spent a day putting together their craft with the help of boatbuilder Andy Fox, who designed the Plastiki which sailed across the Pacific in 2010.

Made from recycled plastic and 12,500 reclaimed bottles, the Plastiki sailed more than 8,000 miles from San Francisco to Australia to raise awareness about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, a vast area of 'plastic soup' estimated to contain six times more plastic waste than plankton.

Fourlanesend's boat, yet to be named, has been made from around 500 bottles, collected at the school in the past few weeks, as well as canisters thrown overboard from ships which have washed up on local beaches.

The five-metre craft, which will be fitted with a sail, will be able to carry around six children at a time, accompanied by a sailing club safety boat.

'This was obviously a very different experience from building the Plastiki – we've put this boat together on the hoof with the materials we had available,' said Andy.

'It's been fantastic to see the enthusiasm of these kids all getting stuck in, and how excited they are about building something they will actually get to sail in themselves.'

Headteacher Rebecca Harris said: 'This is a wonderful opportunity for the children and is part of the work we have been doing this term to get them to think more about waste and how plastic affects the environment.

'It is amazing to see just how many bottles we have amassed in a few weeks.'

Clair Wallerstein, of Rame Peninsula Beach Care, which organised the activity, said: 'This is a great way of getting children to realise that you can do more with plastic than just throwing it away.'