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Sustainability

Sustainability is a key and popular focus at Parkgate House and we are delighted to have been awarded the Eco Schools Green Flag with Distinction. Our pupil-led Eco Committee consists of pupils from PP1 (Year 1) to Prep 6 (Year 6). Representatives are voted in by their classes at the start of the school year. The Eco Committee Reps carry out “eco checks” every Thursday in each of our classrooms, before awarding our ‘Eco Oscar’ to the most eco-friendly class in our weekly Friday assembly. The ‘Eco Oscar’ award was designed and created by one of our Prep 5 (Year 5) pupils, who won the school competition to create a trophy from recycled materials. 

The Eco Committee also meets regularly to discuss the ways in which we can become more sustainable at Parkgate. The Committee is heavily involved in our application to obtain ‘Eco Flagship Status’ with Eco Schools. We are delighted that we are already meeting a lot of the criteria, including the following: 

  • Collaborating with local organisations and charities that support our local environment (such as Friends of Clapham Common and Future Foundations) 
  • The role of our Eco Committee in keeping the running of the school as sustainable as possible, such as checking energy usage and recycling 
  • Our commitment to preserving our natural habitats, with our bug hotel, bird feeder and plants kept indoors and outdoors 
  • The focus we have placed on sustainability in our curriculum, particularly within our Curriculum Focus and Enrichment topics (such as ‘Sustainability in Buildings’ and ‘Oceans and Seas’). 

Parkgate’s work on sustainability has been recognised by external organisations and has led to some exciting collaborations and partnerships. These have included the ‘Dirt is Good’ project run by Future Foundations, who delivered an inspiring workshop with our Eco Committee as well as a whole school assembly on how to be a ‘change maker’. We are happy to feature as a Champion School Case Study. Additionally, Parkgate House is featured on the ‘Let’s Go Zero’ website, which can be found here.

Our recent whole school Curriculum Focus topic has been Oceans and Seas, which has allowed pupils to learn more about marine conservation and the ways in which we can protect our oceans. Activities have taken place with and outside lessons, and included a visit from the Marine Conservation Society who ran workshops for all year groups.  

We also enjoy celebrating Earth Day each year, and this provides many exciting outdoor learning opportunities, as well as seed sowing, a House sunflower-growing competition and a nature-themed bake sale, to raise money for our local charity ‘Friends of Clapham Common’.  

Regular competitions are also held, such as the ‘Bin-Fluencers’ competition, where participants designed creative labels for recycling bins to encourage correct recycling. 

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