5 tips for a greener School to celebrate Green Britain Day on Wednesday 18th May

May 10, 2011 - PRLog -- King Edward’s School are celebrating Green Britain Day on 18 May, 2011 by sharing 5 ideas on how to become a greener School.
Here are 5 simple ideas which most Schools could use towards being greener:-
Grow green
King Edward’s catering department use locally sourced food, wherever possible, to prepare dishes for lunch. To reduce the amount of meat consumed each week pupils voted to have one day a week meat free. ‘Vegetarian Tuesday’ now gives a choice of two vegetarian dishes, a choice of mixed salads or sandwiches.
Learning about where food comes from starts young at King Edward’s. Children at the Pre-Prep children grow vegetables in their own garden which are then used by the cook for lunch. At the Junior School pupils can join Gardening club and learn more about growing and looking after plants. The attractive planters outside the school entrance are all the work of the Junior School Garden Club members. At the Senior School a School orchard has been created and there are plans being drawn up for greening other areas around the School.
Create a garden
A member of staff, Steve Haan, has transformed a courtyard into a haven of green tranquillity with plants and containers donated by members of staff. It is a beautiful tiny garden which shows how easy it is to achieve a green space with a little bit of imagination.  
Recycling
Recycling is now part of the School routine. King Edward’s not only recycles cardboard and paper but there is a box for compostable food waste in the dining hall, which gets added to the compost bin after lunch each day. Sharing is another great way to go green. When staff have finished reading a book they can add it to the Book swap box in return for another.
Travel
Pupils and staff are encouraged to travel to and from School by bike, public transport or on foot where possible. A Travel Guide contains details of all the local bus and trains from Bath and the surrounding area which pupils can use to plan their journeys to School. There are spaces for bicycles on site and the Cycle to Work Scheme has been adopted to encourage staff to cycle. Children at the Junior School are encouraged to improve their cycling skills and learn how to use the roads safely by taking the Bikeability course which runs each year for Year 6.
Personal action
To be truly green everyone needs to do their bit. The Eco Schools team have been instrumental in encouraging the School community to go green through personal action. Signs, posters, assemblies and emails have all been used to spread the green message. Pupils and staff are actively encouraged to turn off computers and lights when they are not being used.