The Year 9 D&T pupils recently had the opportunity to visit Suffolk’s SUEZ recycling and recovery centre and incinerator at Great Blakenham.
CARING FOR OUR ENVIRONMENT
“To cultivate a global outlook and environmental responsibility” is one of the core educational aims of the School.
Members of our pupil-led Eco Committee are the driving force behind behavioural change; their aim is to influence behaviours of pupils and staff as well as educating them on resource efficiency topics and to champion the sustainable ethos to them and their wider circle of families, friends and future employers. Each boarding and day house has representatives on the Eco Committee that are empowered to give advice and direction to their peers. Information is also relayed to Senior House Staff to enable them to facilitate and encourage behavioural change. Each academic year the committee run projects to engage the school community.
All staff receive environmental awareness training and new pupils routinely have an introduction to the Estates Department at the beginning of every academic year as part of PSHE lessons. This gives them an appreciation of where their water and heating come from, how waste is managed, what resources are used, and what work goes on behind the scenes to make the school run.
GOLD CARBON CHARTER 2019
In 2019, RHS was awarded a Gold Carbon Charter by Suffolk County Council for its work to reduce its overall carbon footprint by 35% since 2010. Particular savings were made in the utilities: water usage down 54%, heating oil usage down 41%, and electricity down 26%. A comprehensive metering and monitoring system was put in place in 2012 which identified areas for improvement. This works alongside an increasingly sophisticated Building Management System which more accurately controls energy use.
Eco News
Our new eco signs have proved very successful! Georgie S in Year 12, who initiated the signs, has been carrying out random checks during pick up times in December and January, over a period of 14 days.
Our Headmaster, an avid ornithologist, led our pupil eco-committee on a fascinating walk around the school campus and Alton Water to spot the 12 birds of RHS. Adorned with binoculars and a telescope, their first spot of the walk was our resident peregrine falcon, who currently nests in the school clocktower.
Our Year 7s zoomed into Antarctica last week to speak with Henry Roberts, an Antarctica Researcher! Based at the Princess Elisabeth Research Centre, Henry talked to us from the first ever zero emission polar research station and challenged our pupils to take responsibility for their environment.
To commemorate the COP27 Conference in Egypt, the Model United Nations Society held a debate on the theme of Climate Change.
Global Awareness, Sustainability and Citizenship is a key theme for RHS this year. We are actively putting into practice more sustainable ways of working and living, and this is being consolidated with our pupils by inviting experts in the field to speak to them. It is important to have real world understanding from people who are working on a local, national and global scale to work towards a more sustainable world.