ISBA

13 @the_isba Autumn 2021 | Environmental sustainability Already, our pupils have been active in influencing menus, recycling and education of their peers and families. They have been to external events, for example, our pupils were instrumental in the planning and delivery of the Youth Climate Summit and several NLCS pupils are involved in a project that we hope will be taken to COP26 in Glasgow in November 2021. Did you, as the bursar, experience any pushback from stakeholders (e.g. governing body/others) and, if so, can you explain how you overcame this? We have not had any resistance from governors, though it is probably fair to say that we have depended on support from a key few particularly interested board members. The most controversial issue for us was when we removed beef and lamb from menus in 2019/20, at the time, it caused a flurry of concern but that has since died down. What has the reaction been generally from stakeholders, including governing body, parents, pupils and staff? Our community is generally very accepting of the actions we are taking and we had a positive and enthusiastic response to our 2021 sustainability survey with very high levels of awareness of our initiatives (90%+) and very positive sentiments expressed about the work we have done. The survey revealed some of the changes that staff and pupils had made in their lives as a result of our efforts in school, for example, one pupil stated: “I took part in the Eco Reps Pledge and didn’t buy any shoes, cosmetics, make up or clothes during September and October. It was hard but made me think on the amount of clothing I already have so I am grateful for the experience”. “I signed up to the cycle to work scheme and cycle three times a week”. “ I’ve switched to a green energy tariff and turned my thermostat down by one degree”. “I try not to buy new clothes but when I have to do so, I go to sustainable companies”. “I walk more, use the car less, eat less meat and turn off lights”. Schools are community hubs and the ripple effects they can have has the potential to be enormous. Parents took a pledge in late 2020 to: • 93 percent of our parents are ensuring that our pupils and staff breathe cleaner air by promising not to not idle their engines; • 94 percent of our parents are helping us send less waste to landfill by promising not to use disposable plastic food containers or water bottles; and • 80 percent of parents are making sustainable school uniform choices by promising to take advantage of our second hand sales.