A charity has unveiled a state-of-the-art floating reedbed in the River Lea paid for with an £8,000 grant.

Thames21 launched the project after it was awarded cash through Tesco’s Bags of Help initiative, which funds community schemes using money raised by the 5p plastic bag charge.

The floating reedbed is designed to allow plants to hang in the water and for microbes to colonise, breaking down pollutants in the river.

Ben Fenton, co-ordinator of Thames 21’s Love the Lea campaign said: “The water quality on the River Lea has been a concern for some time now and is something that has been affecting neighbouring boroughs on a daily basis.

“For many years now, wildlife has been decimated by huge amounts of waste material filtering its way into the river and this is an incredibly important, yet simple, way of ridding our waters of pollutants and providing a suitable habitat for local wildlife.”

Community groups and charities can apply for funding through the Bags of Help scheme by visiting: tesco.com/bagsofhelp.