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Eco-campaigners of the future have put their heads together to grab the Prime Minister's attention, with a government petition to act on plastic waste sooner.

Year Six pupils at Sandgate Primary School have appealed online to Theresa May to make our country's leader reconsider her vow of eliminating plastic by 2042.

As part of science week, the Gorillas and Polar Bears classes at the school on Coolinge Lane were taught about the effects of plastic on the environment, including that deposited in the ocean made infamous by the television programme Blue Planet 2.

But after some class research, the pupils were so horrified by what was happening that they decided to take matters into their own hands.

Teacher of the Gorillas class, Catherine Thomas, worked with the children to pen letters to Theresa May to express why they thought the deadline should be brought forward.

She said: "They started to think 'will she write back? Will she read it?'..."

Theresa May announced at the beginning of the year that she will commit the UK to eliminating all avoidable plastic waste by 2042, meaning waste such as the carrier bags, packaging for food and disposable plastic straws would be abolished.

But the target has been heavily criticised by environmental groups, who claim it lacks urgency.

To go further, the schoolchildren created a government petition: "Year 6 believe that deadline will be too late for our world.

"If the children can reach 10,000 signatures, the petition will be responded to.

"If they can get 100,000 signatures, then the issue will be debated in parliament which is what Year Six are hoping for."

But the 10 and 11-year-olds chose not to stop there, and asked their teacher if they could appear on Youtube with an appeal.

She continued: "I said 'it will be as big as you want it to be'.

"I wanted it to be their ideas, and they are trying to bring the community together for one cause.

"Lots have made posters for the school, and the petition's even been signed in Ireland and Scotland."

The cause has been named #makeityourmission, and the pupils are very vocal about their hard work.

Lauren, 11, said: "Our teacher showed us pictures of the plastic crisis. We wanted to do something about it, instead of just talking about it."

Harriet, 11, said: "Seeing plastic on beaches isn't a good sign and we need to do something about it. We need to take action before it gets worse."

Jack, 11, said: "Please sign and share our petition. It is something we urgently need to fix."

To sign the petition, click here.