There’s a worm at the bottom of my garden and his name is, well, I don’t quite rightly know. Because actually, there are thousands of worms at the bottom of my garden, but they’re not just any common or garden worms – they’re tiger worms and they’re living in my compost heap.

While we may not ever be on first name terms, I’m pretty fond of my worms. They’re part of a wonderful world of natural recyclers, quietly helping me to convert my veg peelings and garden waste into a wonderful free resource for my garden. According to Wrap (the Waste and Resources Action Programme) just one compost bin can turn an average of 150kg of food and garden waste per household per year into wonderful compost.

It doesn’t sound much on it’s own, I suppose, but when you consider there are around 275,000 households across Gloucestershire – many of them with the space to compost – that’s a whole lot of food and garden waste we could all deal with sustainably ourselves. During 2013/14 the County Council spent around £11 million landfilling waste, but around 30% of the average bin can easily be composted at home.

Some people get a little worried about composting at home, having heard murmurings that it needs “the right combination of greens and browns” or dark rumours that “it encourages vermin”. But with the right information it’s easy, and in Gloucestershire we have a team of dedicated volunteer Master Composters who spread the word about the benefits of home composting.

The Master Composter initiative is led by UK charity Garden Organic and supported by the Gloucestershire Joint Waste Team, and it aims to encourage more of us to consider home composting by providing hands-on advice and practical help.

Composting is not only a cost-effective way for householders to manage their garden waste, but is ultimately the most environmentally-friendly way to dispose of this and other suitable biodegradable materials, such as food, transforming them into a nutrient-rich soil improver.

Gillian, one of the Gloucestershire Master Composters recently told me: “More than 30% of waste produced by an average household can be composted and while lots of households already compost, we want to encourage many more residents to take part. Composting food and garden waste at home not only cuts the amount of waste, which needs sending to costly landfill sites, but also provides a peat-free boost for gardens.”

She went on to say: “I have been composting at home for over twenty years now, and I am really keen to help others to start. It’s very easy – people seem to think it is complicated but if I can do it, anyone can!”

You can buy a compost bin from as little as £8.49, which makes this an affordable way to do your bit for the environment. To view a range of bins and accessories, and to take advantage of the current ‘buy one get one half price’ offer on compost bins, visit recycleforgloucestershire.com. To contact your local Master Composter email waste@gloucestershire.gov.uk.