Aylesbury Vale District Council is making the special offer to households which do not have enough containers for their recycling.

The baskets are free and the council will waive the usual £2 delivery charge.

Households which put out recycling in plastic bags will receive a card from the council to encourage them to take up the offer.

Cllr Sir Beville Stanier, cabinet member for the environment and health, said: "We know the recycling baskets are on the small side for those households who are keen to recycle everything, so we'd like to encourage them to get more baskets if they need them.

"In the longer term, we are looking at how we manage recycling collections, given that people are recycling much more than when our kerbside scheme first started. We may eventually move to a different type of container."

He added people should avoid using plastic bags as the council's recycling company could not process them, but AVDC would continue to collect recycling put out in clear plastic bags.

Residents can also use other types of boxes for their paper, cans and plastics providing they are sturdy and of a similar size to the council's containers.

Cllr Stanier said: "I'd also like to remind our residents that they will get much more in their baskets if they wash and squash their cans and plastics. Not only can you get more in the basket, the materials are less likely to blow around on windy days."

Anyone wishing to take up this offer should telephone 01296 585510.