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Our Green School's Energy Code
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About Our Green School
What is Green-Schools?
Green-Schools, known internationally as Eco-Schools, is an international environmental education programme, environmental management system and award scheme that promotes and acknowledges long-term, whole school action for the environment.
Unlike a once-off project, it is a long-term programme that introduces participants (students, teachers, parents and the wider community) to the concept of an environmental management system. However, Green-Schools is far more than just an environmental management system. It fosters a strong sense of citizenship and leadership among participants that spreads far outside the school into the wider community. It also promotes a strong sense of teamwork among teachers, students and the wider community to reach a common high level goal. It flattens and democratises school management structures.
It brings children into the decision-making process and makes them responsible for their decision and actions. In fact it could be best described as being ‘more than the sum of its parts’.
The aim of Green-Schools is to increase students’ and participant awareness of environmental issues through classroom studies and to transfer this knowledge into positive environmental action in the school and also in the wider community. Schools that have successfully completed all the elements of the programme are awarded the ‘Green-Flag’. This award has now become a well-recognised Eco-Label. The award has to be renewed every two years.
Our Green School Committee meet frequently with Mrs Kennedy to discuss ways in which we can be more environmentally friendly in our school. There are two Green School Reps from every class who attend these meetings. These Reps then report back to their classes after every meeting.
2016-2017 We are now working on the Water theme in our school. We are very proud of our two existing Green flags but must remember to continue to work hard on reducing Litter and Waste and saving Energy in our school. Our Green schools committee have come up with our top tips for each flag.
Top Tips to reduce Litter and Waste in our school:
Top Tips to save energy in our school:
Here are a list of top 10 water saving tips
Our Green schools committee have been working hard to inform the school of how much water we use every day.
Activity: How much water is used?
What is Green-Schools?
Green-Schools, known internationally as Eco-Schools, is an international environmental education programme, environmental management system and award scheme that promotes and acknowledges long-term, whole school action for the environment.
Unlike a once-off project, it is a long-term programme that introduces participants (students, teachers, parents and the wider community) to the concept of an environmental management system. However, Green-Schools is far more than just an environmental management system. It fosters a strong sense of citizenship and leadership among participants that spreads far outside the school into the wider community. It also promotes a strong sense of teamwork among teachers, students and the wider community to reach a common high level goal. It flattens and democratises school management structures.
It brings children into the decision-making process and makes them responsible for their decision and actions. In fact it could be best described as being ‘more than the sum of its parts’.
The aim of Green-Schools is to increase students’ and participant awareness of environmental issues through classroom studies and to transfer this knowledge into positive environmental action in the school and also in the wider community. Schools that have successfully completed all the elements of the programme are awarded the ‘Green-Flag’. This award has now become a well-recognised Eco-Label. The award has to be renewed every two years.
Our Green School Committee meet frequently with Mrs Kennedy to discuss ways in which we can be more environmentally friendly in our school. There are two Green School Reps from every class who attend these meetings. These Reps then report back to their classes after every meeting.
2016-2017 We are now working on the Water theme in our school. We are very proud of our two existing Green flags but must remember to continue to work hard on reducing Litter and Waste and saving Energy in our school. Our Green schools committee have come up with our top tips for each flag.
Top Tips to reduce Litter and Waste in our school:
- Continue to recycle and compost in every classroom.
- Bring home left over food.
- Our Litter Wardens keep our yard Litter free daily.
Top Tips to save energy in our school:
- Switch off the lights when we don’t need them.
- Put computers and whiteboards on standby at breaktimes.
- Keep the doors and windows shut to keep in the heat.
- Photocopy double sided.
Here are a list of top 10 water saving tips
- Only wash clothes when the washing machine is full.
- Take a shower not a bath.
- Put a hippo bag in your toilet to save water.
- When washing the car use a bucket and sponge not a hose.
- Always fix leaking taps.
- Don’t’ let the water run when brushing our teeth.
- Collect rainwater in a water butt to use when watering plants.
- Use a stopper in the sink.
- Only turn on the dishwasher when it is full.
- Don’t use running water to thaw food.
Our Green schools committee have been working hard to inform the school of how much water we use every day.
Activity: How much water is used?
- Running the tap uses 8 – 12 litres per minute
- Washing up in the sink uses 6 – 8 litres
- Washing hands and face uses 3 – 9 litres
- Brushing teeth with tap on uses 6 litres
- 5 minute shower uses 35 litres
- Taking a power shower uses 13 – 22 litres per minute
- Taking a bath uses 80 litres
- Flushing the toilet uses 6 – 12 litres
- Running a modern dishwasher uses 15 litres
- Running a modern washing machine uses 60 – 80 litres
- Having a bath uses 75 – 90 litres
- Flushing the toilet uses 13 litres
- Flushing the toilet on ultra low flow 6 litres
- Using a hosepipe 550 – 1,000 litres per hour
- Making food and drink 6 – 10 litres
