Ysgol Stanwell School
Archer Road, Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan, CF64 2XL
Archer Road, Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan, CF64 2XL
The Eco Schools programme is an international initiative that encourages pupils to engage with environmental and sustainable development issues.
The programme is a learning resource and topic areas include: Litter, Waste Minimisation, Transport, Healthy Living, Energy, Water, School Grounds and Global Citizenship.
Pupils take key roles in decision making and participation in order to reduce the environmental impact of their school. In this way, Eco-Schools extend learning beyond the classroom and develop responsible citizenship attitudes both at home and in the wider community.
The Eco Schools International Green Flag, awarded to schools with high achievement in their programme, is a recognised and respected eco-label for performance in Education for Sustainable Development. The Eco-Schools programme is a long-term activity, with the award being re-assessed and renewed every two years.
The Eco-Schools Programme is funded by the Welsh Assembly Government, the Countryside Council for Wales and Waste Awareness Wales.
“With a GREEN FLAG showing high achievement for our school it showcases that we have been recognised & respected for performance in environmental awareness and sustainable development”. Miss E Ghazi-Torbati (Eco Coordinator)
At Stanwell we aim to excel at promoting environmental awareness both within the school and the wider community. We encourage respect for the environment throughout all aspects of school life.
At Stanwell School we have called the eco committee Eco Stanwell in relation to our environmental aim and code of practise. Eco Stanwell has many ages from the Year 7 to sixth form, all of whom are committed to protecting and preserving the local and national environments.
We received our first Green Flag back in 2005 after months of work by pupils and teachers on recycling initiatives within curriculum schemes of work and extracurricular activities, becoming the first secondary school in the Vale of Glamorgan to do so. After many years of commitment and hard work, we are current holders of the Platinum Plus ‘Green Flag Award’. This award really highlights Eco Stanwell’s dedication to a more sustainable future.
Eco Schools Platinum+ Green Flag award. Awarded to Eco Stanwell April 2019
Eco Stanwell continues to implement the 3 R’s, “Reduce, Reuse and Recycle” within the school and is now working with the ESDGC groups and the Healthy Schools team to reach our goals in other areas such as supporting the Fair Trade scheme, improving our school grounds, developing global links and encouraging healthy living.
Eco Stanwell 2018-19
We’ve been involved with many projects, here are the most notable.
An annual event held during the month of November. This year the theme was ‘Plastic in our Oceans’. Neil Power (Year 12) and Oliver Crothers (Year 9) created resources to educate pupils about this topic through assemblies and pastoral sessions.
Neil Power delivering an assembly to Year 8 pupils on ‘Plastics in our Oceans’ during Eco Week 2018.
The Woodland Trust, in partnership with Ikea Cardiff, donated 500 trees to Stanwell, which we planted (in one day!) at the bottom of the school field. Despite the seasonable weather, pupils and staff did a tremendous job at planting all the trees, and really enjoyed the process. Thank you to everyone that got involved!
This year Eco Club took part in the ‘Litter Less’ project, run by Keep Wales Tidy. They had to monitor and reduce litter in an area of their choice around the school. Eco Club chose to focus on the footpath from the Victoria Road entrance, reducing the litter by introducing a new bin, educating and raising awareness and doing litter picks. Eco were awarded £200 for their successes in this project.
Eco Stanwell members monitoring litter on the Victoria Road footpath.
This year, Eco Stanwell decided to put reducing plastic to the top of their agenda. Working closely with Mr Robinson, the food manager, they have swapped all plastic cutlery with a compostable alternative and have started to phase out single use plastic water bottles by bringing in cans of water.
New ‘Can O Waters’, which are being sold in the canteen
Another exciting project that we’ve been involved in this year is the introduction of new reusable water bottles. They will be launched in September 2019, and be timed with the expulsion of single use plastic water bottles from being sold in school. In preparation for this, Eco Stanwell wrote to Mr Brown to ask for a new water machine, which was installed near the MFL department before Easter. Success!
Eco Stanwell’s agenda took a role in this year’s KS3 production, as over 70% of the costumes for the ‘The Little Mermaid’ were created from recycled materials. Eco Stanwell also wrote a parody of the song ’Under the Sea’ and recorded a music video, which was played during the interval. Despite being light hearted, the song included an important message about the ever growing problem of pollution and plastic in the oceans.
Some of the costumes created out of recycled materials.
Come along to Eco Stanwell! Thursdays 3-4 in F31, or email chair.ecostanwell@gmail.com. We’d love to hear your ideas!
© 2014-2021 Ysgol Stanwell School. All rights reserved. Back to the top.