School Tips - make a difference now!

We are frequently get asked questions about what schools can do to be 'greener'.  Without visiting each and every school, it is very difficult to give advice, but these following points should help you to make a start saving energy, and money, right away.

The amount of energy used to switch on a fluorescent light is now so low, if you are planning to be out of the room for more than 10 seconds, you'll save energy by switching it off.  This research was conducted by a number of bodies, including the US

Make sure that the urinals are switched off at night, and especially during the holidays.  Many urinals are set to flush every 5 minutes or so, but there is absolutely no need for a toilet to be flushing at 3am, or on Sunday afternoon when no one has used the building for two days.

Before the children leave the classroom at the end of the day, get them to draw the curtains or blinds - especially important during the winter.

Get in touch with other schools to see if you can order recycled paper at the same time, this will give you more buying power and enable you to negotiate a bigger discount.

Use your environment!  Schools are often blessed with large green spaces, so why not use it for every subject?  Take a quadrate out during the maths lesson, look at the surroundings for art, study the natural landscape for English, investigate how development has changed the area for geography ... and so the list goes on!  Kids might be unruly to start with, so then you take them all in and they lose the privilege, they'll soon learn that being outside is more fun than acting the fool and being sent indoors!

But ... don't create more than you can cope with!!  Many schools are lucky to have a really enthusiastic teacher or too on the staff who undertake great projects, but for maximum effect, the entire school needs to get involved and stay involved - this includes everyone from the Headteacher to the new parents, caretaker, kitchen staff and external grounds maintenance team.

Finally, make sure everyone knows why you are trying to save energy.  In larger schools it is easy for teaching staff to not even know who works in what department, so e mailing 'all@yourschool.co.uk' won't work as effectively as you being brave for a couple of days and shouting about your efforts in the middle of lunch break in the staff room to make sure that your message gets through!

Send mail to info@footprint-trust.co.uk with questions or comments about this web site.