IT is nearly time! The first ever Acorn Awards will be presented on Wednesday, February 24.

The judges have got together and scratched their heads — and needing extra brain power to make the decisions, had to resort to bacon butties and muffins.

It took a whole morning, and then into the afternoon they went but they have come up with the winners and runners-up in every category —best Green team project, most supportive teacher of a Green Team, young environmentalist, Denis the Dustcart Award for Innovation and best Green team school.

These first awards were open to schools which signed up to have a Green team in the scheme's first year.

But who will walk off with the prizes?

All will be revealed on February 24 at the special award ceremony at Exeter Corn Exchange.

And what a ceremony it will be!

Special guests will include TV naturalist Nick Baker; musician Ellie Williams; first team players from Exeter City; TV sports reporter Mark Tyler; Genius Greenius; cartoonist Ross Hendrick and Exeter's Lord Mayor Cllr John Winterbottom.

And if that is not enough, special entertainment will be provided by magician Ozzy D who will be performing a range of amazing tricks.

Green team members and their teachers will be welcomed to the ceremony with a Genius cocktail (non-alcoholic!) which will be green and has been specially created for the day.

There will be an opportunity to get autographs and pictures and even to see how cartoonist Ross goes about creating a Genius Greenius cartoon for the Echo each week.

And of course there will be lunch and the award ceremony itself.

Everyone at the Echo and all the sponsors, Exeter City Council, Gregory Distribution and Western Power Distribution are very excited about the awards and we hope green teamers are too.

There will certificates for all Green teamers and, to make sure we off-set lots of carbon, each school there on the day will receive three young trees, a hornbeam, green beech and hawthorn, to plant in their grounds.