An environmentally friendly school
In recognition of our efforts to become a more sustainable and environment-conscious school, we have received the Green Flag Award – the highest Eco-Schools achievement.
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Eco-Schools
Recognising that the time to act is now, we are part of the Eco-Schools programme. It is the largest sustainable schools programme in the world, present in 67 countries and around 52,000 schools. The Eco-Schools Green Flag is an internationally recognised award for excellence in environmental action and learning. They are setting an example of how green schools can lead the way for a more environmentally aware nation.
Our Eco-committee
Each September we hold elections to establish a student-led Eco-committee. The aim of the Eco-committee is to achieve eco credentials by creating meaningful reflection and action on how we can be a more environmentally aware school. Our Eco-committees have helped establish us as one of the best environmentally friendly schools in the UK. We are currently a Green Flag Award Eco-School.
Green Flag Award:
So, how did we achieve the Green Flag Award? Every school taking part in the Eco-Schools programme follows the same Seven Step framework that takes schools between one and two academic years to complete and the process is designed to engage the whole school and its wider community. The process includes:
- Establishing a student-elected Eco-committee with one representative from each year group
- The Eco-committee conducts an Environmental Audit of the school in all ten Eco-Schools topics – these include: Biodiversity, Energy, Litter, Water, Healthy Living, Transport and Waste. Read ours here.
- Using the results from the environmental audit, the Eco-committee decides on an action plan for three chosen topic areas
- The committee oversees the implementation of the action plan and monitor its success
- Eco-committee consistently shares their plans and findings with the school through school assemblies, online media and the Eco-committee board
By gathering evidence of these stages outlined, we were able to pass the criteria and become a Green Flag school!
Upcoming Plans
The Downe House Environmental Committee Officers are creating a new Downe House Sustainability Plan. The plan will cover changes the School community can make for the next one year, five years and later so we are committed to continuing our environmental efforts.
We have successfully trialled an Eco-Houses scheme with one of our Upper School houses, AGS. Our thanks to AGS for being the first house to take on the challenge and see such fantastic results. The scheme saw AGS triple their recycling output and halve their general waste output. We will continue to make all our houses more environmentally friendly.
In Michaelmas term 2023, we are also working on a new project to make our School Chapel meet the criteria to qualify as a Church of England “Eco-Church“.
Tours & Open Mornings
The best way to find out more about Downe House is to experience it for yourself. Book a personal tour or join us at one of our Open Mornings, available throughout the year.
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