THERE was a high level of excitement in a high wind at the Dolphin Centre at South Kessock on 29th July when the six finalists gathered to hear the results of the Keep Britain Tidy poster contest. The judge - Inverness artist Dean Melville - had a difficult time choosing the winners from so many excellent entries, but a decision was eventually made as follows:

Highly commended are Carlie Borthwick and Laura Leckie. Carlie’s design, based on the Scottish flag, was bold and colourful and there was local interest in the form of the Kessock Bridge and Nessie. Laura’s cheerful “Thistle” was full of character. Its message was very clear: “We’ve got bins - use ’em!” They each won a £5 voucher from WH Smith and a t-shirt with their own design printed on it.

Runners-up are Stephanie Brown and Aaron Maclennan. Stephanie chose the colourful advice: “Don’t Drop It” while Aaron depicted a huge pyramid of litter and the line “Litter is a Pest”. They each won a £15 voucher from WH Smith.

Winners are Donna Craigie and Nicole Turnbull. Donna’s “Litterbug” caught the judge’s eye, and Nicole really hit the nail on the head with her invention of the characters which form so much of the litter - Carl Coke and Chrissie Crisp. Donna and Nicole each won a family ticket for a trip on a dolphin boat and a £5 voucher from WH Smith.

The anti-litter poster contest was run among pupils at Merkinch Primary and St Joseph’s in support of the Keep Scotland Beautiful campaign. It was organised by Merkinch Community Council, who donated the winners and runners-up vouchers, and News & Views, which donated the highly commended prizes. The organisers are grateful to Scott Gair of Dolphin Cruises, Shore Street, who supplied the family cruise tickets.

Pictured above are, from left: Aaron Maclennan, Carlie Borthwick, Laura Leckie, Nicole Turnbull, Donna Craigie and Stephanie Brown.