Eco Committee

At Bidbury we are very proud to have achieved the Eco-Schools Green Flag Award in August 2023.

Eco-Schools is a global programme and engages over 19.5 million children across 67 countries; it is the largest educational programme on the planet. The programme is carried out through a Seven-Step framework with the ultimate goal of achieving the international Eco-Schools Green Flag award. As well as promoting positive environmental change, it develops pupils’ skills, prompts independence and communal responsibility, improves their understanding of the environment, improves the school environment and creates financial savings in the long run. To find out more information about the programme, visit their website: www.eco-schools.org.uk

The Eco-Schools assessors said:

You have an extremely large Eco-Committee supported by 2 adult members of staff. This demonstrates a whole school approach to the Eco-Schools programme and a commitment to environmental education and pupil-led eco-action. We love the inclusive approach you’ve taken to setting your Eco-Committee. This sets a positive and encouraging tone for your work, which supports a collaborative and community ethos, vital in maximising impacts. Great work! The pupil quote provided is brilliant. They’re clearly a passionate and impressive young person and we’re delighted that they have been given an opportunity to make a difference through the Eco-Schools programme, what a fantastic ambassador for your school and our programme.

The meeting minutes uploaded were both neat and professional, we loved reading them. It's brilliant to read that the Environmental Review helped your pupils appreciate everything that your school is already doing to benefit our environment and identify areas to work on in the future. Your Eco-Committee didn’t let any tricky questions on the Environmental Review defeat them, instead they sought out other experts in their school, such as your site manager and other class teachers, to help answer questions which demonstrates their resilience and team ethos. It was lovely to read all the comments on your Environmental Review and gain a real insight into the debate and discussion that took place whilst completing it.

It’s clear your Eco-Committee are constantly considering what actions they can take to improve their local community and benefit our planet. We love that your Environmental Review and quick wins (brilliant idea!) inspired the choice of projects in your Action Plan. It’s a strong approach to work on things that will produce visible impact and change, and a great example of critical thinking. We think it’s a great idea to design actions that can extend beyond the school walls and into the homes of families. This ethos is going to make a huge difference and inspire your wider school community. We love that your actions are designed for young people to deliver and lead, empowering them and increasing their confidence. This is central to the Eco-Schools ethos.

The three curriculum examples provided are a great example of environmental education. They are practical and fun examples of eco-education with a real-life context that will engage young people. You have provided practical and fun curriculum examples, which impressively build on the projects you have worked on in your Action Plan. This is a great way to add context to your Eco-Schools work, it means young people at your school are given the opportunity to learn about important environmental issues and then the chance to work on these issues – a great dual approach. It was great to see the uploaded examples of your classroom materials and plans. It shows a clear commitment to ensuring your pupils get engaging environmental education. Great work by all involved!

You have placed a lot of emphasis on informing as many members of your school community as possible in your Eco-Schools work and this is a strength of your application. Our team loved seeing the example social media posts that were uploaded. Getting involved with Havant PO9 as well as Wear it Wild Day to fundraise and raise awareness is a great example of collaboration. Your ability and willingness to partnership is impressive! We’ll need this approach to fight the impacts of climate change in the future! We hope all staff members involved in your Eco-Schools work take immense amounts of pride from the parental quote uploaded. Your hard work and dedication has inspired young people and empowered them with the belief that they can positively impact our planet – this is something incredibly special.

Your uploaded Eco-Board helped to bring your Eco-Schools application to life – it’s a real celebration of your eco-activity that will increase engagement from your school community. Your greatest successes link clearly to the experience of your pupils. It is great to read about the continuing improvement of your Eco-Committees confidence and passion, as well as their awareness at just how much of a difference they have been making and will continue to make. This is what the best forms of climate action are about – impactful but achievable things that create a positive experience and prompt more action. We love this! Time is a common challenge. It creates a pressure and takes resilience to keep going. With this context, your achievements are even greater and we feel lucky that you’ve committed to our programme and delivered the achievements that you have. This is a big achievement.

We love your collaborative approach to creating your acrostic Eco-Code poem, this approach has allowed young people to take ownership and create a final code that will be treasured by everyone at your school. Your Eco-Code is very punchy, clear and easy to digest for those that see it. It’s a direct call to action. We love this!

Overall, this is a terrific application. Everyone at Bidbury Junior School should be proud of the Green Team and the amazing and inspiring work that they’ve delivered this year. You’re more than worthy of an Eco-Schools Green Flag, Congratulations!