St Mary’s Eco Committee continues its strong momentum

St Mary’s is fortunate to have its own dedicated Eco Committee run by a group of passionate and driven students, who are each committed to making sustainable, environmentally friendly decisions to benefit our school community. The enthusiasm of our Eco Committee ensures our wider school continues to engage with important issues that affect the local area, the UK, and the wider world.  

The work of the Eco Committee is gathering pace with the team currently striving to gain an international accreditation - The Eco School’s Green Flag. This highly regarded endorsement has been rewarding young people’s environmental actions for more than 25 years and provides a great way to acknowledge and celebrate the ecological achievements of the team. Further news about the Eco Committee’s efforts to secure this accreditation will be announced as key milestones are reached. A final decision is expected in the summer of 2022.  

Aside from its Eco School Green Flag application, the Eco Committee meets regularly to actively discuss environmental issues and plan how best to implement projects related to its chosen areas of interest. The committee’s current main focus topics and aims are as follows:  

• Marine: To raise awareness of ocean pollution and support charities taking action on this problem 

• Waste: To improve the way the school manages its waste and implement impactful ways for students and staff to refuse, reduce, reuse, repair and recycle their waste 

• School Grounds: To improve outside areas and students’ involvement and interaction with nature whilst at school.  

In order to achieve the above aims, the team has already implemented a number of ideas and projects, with various other initiatives in the pipeline. Every Wednesday (week one) the committee has been running ‘Eco Wednesdays’, which have proven to be a huge hit with pupils. Activities are open to all students from across the school and recent examples have included: making crafts using old plastic and cardboard materials; watching environmental documentaries; and making reusable masks out of old clothing.  

In addition, the Eco Committee recently introduced a new box to our reception area for plastic waste – diverting it from landfill. The box is part of a recycling scheme by the company ReWorked, which collects materials that can’t be recylced and turns them into useful products such as chairs, plant pots and chalkboards, which can then be purchased on its website. The whole school has contributed to this important initiative and we would like to thank staff and students for their continued support.  

The team also honoured World Wildlife Day (3rd March) and has asked fellow students to bring in recyclable plastics in order to create a unique piece of artwork of a whale tail - highlighting ocean pollution. The artwork is now in the cortile along with learning resources about ocean pollution. Watch this space for more pictures and details coming soon.  

The eco committee also held a ‘Recycling Assembly’ before Easter to raise awareness around the school’s current waste initiatives and inform students about refusing, reducing, reusing, repairing and recycling.  

Keep up the great work girls and a big thank you to everyone for their continued support in our on-going commitment to becoming a more sustainable and environmentally friendly school.

Find out more about sustainability at St Mary's here.