STANSTED Airport has invited budding young artists to put paintbrush to paper and design posters to kick off a new campaign to keep the transport hub tidy.

Students at Alec Hunter Community College in Braintree have been challenged to paint three dazzling posters with clever catchphrases in a bid to inspire passengers and staff to bin their trash.

Winning entries for the ‘Keep Stansted Tidy’ campaign will be displayed across the airport throughout 2012, including the Golden Jubilee weekend and the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Hamish Birley, assistant headteacher at Alec Hunter Humanities College, said: “This competition is a great opportunity for students to show off their artistic abilities, but also to reflect upon an issue that affects us all.

“For our students to feel that they can contribute to such a high profile campaign will enthuse them to be litter conscious and therefore less likely to litter themselves.

“The thought of having their designs being used in the airport to encourage people to keep the airport tidy is a fantastic motivation to produce inspiring work.”

Kate Newcombe, project leader of the ‘Keep Stansted Tidy’ campaign, said: “This is a fantastic opportunity for young budding artists to showcase their artwork in one of the UK’s busiest airports.

“This initiative will help ensure all those visitors using Stansted to celebrate the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games and the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee have the best possible impression of the airport and the UK.

Posters will focus on key areas such as food waste, empty bottles, unwanted newspapers, cigarettes butts and chewing gum.

Winning designs will be on display in the terminal, coach station, car parks and transfer buses.

The initiative is part of a Government-led campaign to tidy up the UK.