What Winchester schools are doing to make the city greener 

As part of the eighth year of Winchester Green Week, a Greener Schools Forum was held to highlight what the local schools are doing to reduce their environmental impact.

The evening was open to parents, school staff and anyone who was interested in knowing what the local schools are doing to make the city greener.  

The event organiser, Isabel Mack, believes that part of the reason people have not acted quickly enough with climate change is due to our disconnection with nature.

She emphasised the importance of educating children to understand their role within nature and their dependency on it.

As well as a parent volunteer, Isabel is the founder of Party Kit Network – a social enterprise based in Winchester that specialises in reusable tableware for parties.

Party Kit Network has avoided more than 1.3m single use items in waste since July 2020. 

Various local schools and colleges shared what they are doing to reduce their harmful impact on the environment.

Oliver’s Battery shared their sustainable “bike bus” movement – a group of parents and children who wrap themselves in high viz and cycle to school together, reducing the number of cars on the morning school run around Winchester.

Vibeke Fennell, a parent governor from South Wonston Primary, thinks the bike bus is a “brilliant idea” and already knows which parents at the school gate she is going to approach to start one. 

Other school schemes included a seasonal costume swap, that encourages children to trade in their costumes from different fancy dress events throughout the year.

From Halloween to World Book Day, students can get their hands on character costumes that caught their eye last holiday while also reducing over-consumption and financial pressure on parents. 

Edd Moore, author of 100 Ideas for Primary Teachers: Greener School and Head of Education at Green Schools Project, spoke about his time working at Green School Bali where he worked on a jungle campus, educating children on the environment through hands-on projects.

Edd made the decision to leave teaching after 13 years as he felt he wanted to use his passion and knowledge of the environment to support teachers and schools on their “environmental journeys”. 

When asked what the wider community can do to play their part in helping the environment, Isabel Mack encouraged people to check out what is going on in their community.

This could include energy projects, community gardens or repair cafes.