Green flag award

Published by The Robert Ogden School on Tuesday 11th of December 2018

In 2013 Robert Ogden School joined the Dearne Valley Eco-Schools Partnership, which unites all the schools in the Dearne Valley area. Being part of the partnership has been a really enjoyable experience for our young people. We have meetings and trips out with other schools and share lots of ideas in the process. The latest trip out was an organised litter pick. We left the area spick and span! One of our members of staff is an assessor for the eco-school project. Taking her experience of horticulture and recycling at Robert Ogden with her, she visits local schools to see if they can be awarded a green flag to show they are a qualified Eco-School. Robert Ogden is leading the way. We Joined the eco school scheme in 2007, we worked hard to achieve our bronze and silver certificate. We were first awarded our green flag in 2010 for all the hard work of the pupils and staff, this is the highest award under the scheme - the coveted Green Flag. Then again in June 2018 our school applied again and was successful for a fifth time. The eco ethos is embedded into our curriculum so recycling and saving energy by switching equipment and lights off comes easy to our pupils as it is part of their daily routine. The assessor commented: "What an inspirational school! They have not only whole-heartedly embraced the Eco-schools ethos, but use it in an imaginative and creative way to support their pupils’ learning and wellbeing, matching appropriate activities to the pupils’ needs. I was hugely impressed. Well done to all the pupils and staff, with especial thanks to the two Eco-champions and to the senior management team who support their work". Eco-Schools is an international award programme that guides schools on their sustainable journey, providing a simple framework to help make sustainability an integral part of school life. Eco-Schools can help enhance the curriculum and get the whole school united behind something important. Their mission is to help make every school in the country sustainable and to bring about behaviour change in young people and those connected to them so that good habits learned in schools are followed through into homes and communities.