Pupils inspire switch from single-use plastics

"It’s really incredible that, even at such a young age, they're showing true commitment to making sure we look after our environment."

Kelly Ryan is head teacher of Robert Miles Infant School in Bingham, Nottinghamshire, where a group of eco-conscious Key Stage One children have inspired change.

It all started when they wrote letters to school leaders expressing their concerns over disposable single-use plastics.

Now, reusable plastic pudding pots are used at lunchtime at not just their school, but four others in the Nova Education Trust.

When the feedback was passed to the school's catering company, it agreed it was time for a change.

Mrs Ryan said it was "incredible" seeing just how much the pupils care for the environment.

She said: "We decided as a school that caring for the environment was really important to us and made it one of our whole-school promises.

"The issue of the disposable pots and not wanting that wastage every day became really big."

Amy Attwood, Key Stage One teacher, said: "We didn’t think a few children’s letters would make such a big difference but it’s been really nice to see the change.

"The children have been really excited to see it.

"It’s really important. We can see that our world is slowly depreciating, getting warmer by the day, and it’s really about getting them to understand the impact that has."

The change to reusable plastic pudding pots at their school as well as Birklands Primary, Firbeck Primary, Victoria Primary and Westdale Junior is not the Robert Miles Infant schoolchildren’s only green commitment.

As part of their forest school teaching, the children grow food on an allotment on site, and have daily compost monitors to make sure food waste is not sent to landfill from their classrooms.

Nova Education Trust, which supports 15 academies across the East Midlands, has now given the school an internal environmental impact award to recognise their efforts.

The trust's CEO Ash Rahman said: "Our young environmentalists at Robert Miles Infant School have shown us that age is no barrier to making a difference.

"Their initiative has extended beyond their own school, and we're incredibly proud of their commitment to creating a sustainable future.

"We can't wait to see what they help us to transform next."

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