Environmental Education Policy
Warter CE VC Primary School
Our Mission Statement
The aim of our school is to enable every child to grow intellectually, morally,
spiritually and physically in a caring Christian community. We seek to help
children achieve their full potential by encouraging a love of learning and the
development of self-esteem and confidence. As a Church school we aim to
develop Christian values and foster a respect for other people and their beliefs,
as positive participants in the world community.
At Warter C.E Primary School we are committed to ensuring that children have
a secure understanding of their community, an appreciation of their
surroundings and an awareness of the diversity of physical and human
conditions. It is important in this ever changing world that children understand
and appreciate their environment and how their actions impact upon the national
and global picture.
We feel in this environment it is becoming crucial that children develop
positive attitudes towards the environment and remain, respectful of the world
the live in. We therefore aim to foster an ethos of caring for the environment
buy making small changes and caring for the environment that surrounds us.
We feel it is very important for children to have an awareness of their
influence on their local surroundings and furthermore their impact on their
global community. Through our actions, we should develop good habits and
behaviour patterns in order that every member of society can contribute to a
sustainable future. It is our duty to maintain a positive, safe and healthy
environment for our children to grow up in.
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We aim to create a safe and happy environment for all of our children and we
intend to do this by making sure all children are responsible for their
surroundings. We aim to develop a thoughtful and caring attitude to our school
grounds and buildings by promoting a clear message to all children one which
fosters respect and care for the environment and each other. We follow both
our whole school mission statement: Don’t waste Warter- let’s go Green and our
individual class eco codes.
We hope children can develop knowledge and understanding of the natural
processes that take place, both within and outside the school environment:
Understand how life is dependent on the environment.
Be aware of different environments past and present.
Understand how past actions and decisions have affected the present
environment.
Know that what we do will affect others in the future.
Be aware of environmental issues such as pollution, sustainable developments
and the destruction of the rainforests.
Understand that divergent discussion can arise from environmental issues.
Specific Policy Aims:
Responsibility:
Responsibility lies with the school’s Green Team, who will meet on once each half
term to discuss progress, review the action plan and discuss any new projects or
developments.
The Head teacher, together with such members of the School’s management
and/ or teaching staff and support staff as she thinks fit, shall be responsible
for achieving the aims of this policy.
Implementation and monitoring:
A group comprising of pupils and adults will be involved in the development,
implementation and review of the school’s environmental policy. They should
recommend action that could be taken to meet the policy’s aims and where
possible help to implement the action plan. The policy needs to be maintained by
each member of staff within school and all pupils. The policy will be reviewed
annually and ensure the Green Flag status stays in place.
Curriculum aims:
Many areas of the National Curriculum incorporate education for sustainable
development. It is statutory in Geography, Science and Citizenship whilst Design
and Technology, History, Art and Design, ICT, and Physical Education amongst
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other subjects can all promote various elements. We intend to stream
sustainability and environmental issues throughout the schools curriculum and
aim to cover such areas within our chosen themes. We will also hold an annual
‘Green Week’ which will look at raising awareness of local and global issues.
We also aim to integrate the wider community into these aims by having
support and encouragement from both parents and governors of the school and
actively request visitors and helpers from the local area to support our learning
through talks based around an environmental theme
As a school we aim to maintain coverage of the nine topics;
Litter:
Litter is an environmental issue.
The School has an obligation under the Environment Protection Act 1990 to
keep grounds free of litter.
Litter reduction and prevention is an on-going process that involves all members
of the school community.
Our school community should:
Regard litter clearing as a positive environmental action, which will also help
foster a sense of personal pride and responsibility in pupils.
Demonstrate that litter prevention improves the environmental quality of the
school and the neighbourhood.
Promote litter clearing both in and out of school. Children will be encouraged to
share any positive actions they have taken out of school and get involved with
any out of school initiatives designed to promote a cleaner environment.
Litter monitors will be responsible for making sure the school grounds are free
of waste and will monitor litter on a weekly basis.
Waste Minimisation:
Our school community should:
Raise awareness of what the school can do to minimise waste going to landfill, to
fit in with Council objectives.
Reduce waste by purchasing less single use disposable items and more recycled
materials.
Reuse materials by choosing more products that are recyclable or have
reclaimable components.
Recycle, processing waste material.
Appreciate the financial implications as well as the environmental benefits of
waste minimisation and recycling activities.
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We will promote the 3 R’s throughout the school by having scrap paper bins and
recycling bins in every classroom. Children will be encouraged to recycle both in
and out of school.
Energy:
Our school community should:
Monitor energy consumption by tracking regularly the school’s use of gas,
electricity or oil.
Make all members of the school community aware of the link between energy
use and financial cost.
Establish partnerships with energy providers, helping to put in place effective
energy- saving measures.
Establish and show that simple low- or no-cost measures to conserve energy can
be effective and bring about significant savings.
Consider using alternative sources of energy such as solar power.
Ensure all future new build and refurbishment building works conforms to the
highest environmental standards where these are consistent with good financial
management and estimated ‘payback’ levels.
A light and water monitor have been appointed in each class. These children are
responsible for making sure all lights and taps are turned off when not in use.
Water:
Our school community should:
Monitor water use.
Make pupils aware of the link between water use and financial cost.
Establish and raise awareness of simple actions that can cut down on water use
substantially.
Help pupils and the wider community understand that conserving water is vital
to our future.
Transport:
Our school community should:
Raise awareness about the impact of transport to the environment and to
people’s health.
Promote car sharing throughout the school as a positive step in caring fro the
environment.
Hold a ‘Walk on Wednesday’ initiative twice a year to promote a healthy
lifestyle.
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School grounds:
Our school community should:
Use the school grounds as a source of teaching and learning opportunities for
pupils.
Ensure that the grounds provide for recreational use by pupils as well as
provision to undertake exercise on a weekly basis throughout the school.
Develop the grounds as a place for aesthetic experiences.
Maintain habitats for a range of other species.
Be aware that the school grounds provide the visitor with the first impression
of the school and will influence the attitude and behaviour of the pupils.
Healthy Living:
Our school community should:
Be aware that good mental as well as physical health at an early age not only
helps avoid future health problems such as obesity and heart disease: It can
also improve pupils’ ability to learn.
Aim to be a healthy school by looking holistically at issues of exercise, diet, the
aesthetic quality of the school and its grounds.
Promote a healthy approach to life by offering healthy school meals to all
children and encouraging children to lead active and healthy lifestyles through
‘Health Week’ and a thematic approach to learning.
Biodiversity:
Children will have a responsibility to the school grounds to care for and look
after their surroundings.
They have been given an area of the Millennium garden to take care of and will
be encouraged through their learning to nurture and care for their
surroundings.
Global perspectives:
Children will be given the opportunity to learn about life in other countries
through National Curriculum units of work and also recognise their impact on
Global issues and how they can make a difference.
The staff and governing body will review this policy each year. The views of the
children, staff and parents will be sought and taken into account in this review.
The policy will next be reviewed in the Spring Term of 2012 by staff and the
full governing body.
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