THREE Year 3 pupils at Halstead Preparatory School in Woking have been turning trash into treasure to help save threatened wildlife habitats around the world.

Juliet, Ember and Emily describe themselves as “very determined eco-warriors” inspired by Sir David Attenborough.

They have been busy recycling used bottle tops to sell as Christmas decorations, raising money for Operation Ocelot, a project launched by the conservation charity World Land Trust with patron Steve Backshall, the naturalist and television presenter.

Operation Ocelot, which is primarily to engage children, is aimed at saving habitats in Caribbean Guatemala.

Making their point, the friends say: “By supporting Operation Ocelot you will help fund the expansion of the Laguna Grande Reserve, the tropical home of more than 700 species, from 1,668 to nearly 5,000 acres.

“This area has already lost 80% of its lowland forest but, with your help, together we can make sure the destruction of nature doesn’t go any further.”

Operation Ocelot is based on measuring the area of a piece of land, and from that a calculator on the World Land Trust website works out a fundraising target so youngsters can understand the size of habitat they will be protecting.

The girls walked the Vyne field in Knaphill, measuring it with their feet, then getting an adult to help them compile the large numbers.

Having finished all the calculations – it covers 10,500 square metres for a fundraising target of £1,449 – the friends set to work.

Bottle tops were collected from pubs and washed; white paint sprayed on both sides (more than once); a glue gun – under adult supervision – held the tops together; then fine paintbrushes were used to paint them.

Once completed the decorations were sold at the St John the Baptist and the Knaphill Christmas markets, which raised more than £100. Raffles were also organised, and the girls’ JustGiving page now stands at more than £200.

“We would like to thank the Cricketers pub in Horsell and the Nag’s Head in Knaphill who collected a total of 821 bottle caps for us,” they said. “We would also like to thank the Christmas markets for allowing us to sell our decorations.

“We will also be writing to organisations and supermarkets in case they would like to purchase some of our decorations for their Christmas trees. We will be happy to deliver or even post them.”

* FOR more information and to donate, visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/julietemberemily-jee