Raising our Green Ambitions

This autumn we all witnessed a surge in organisations seeking to demonstrate their sustainability prowess; the COP26 conference held in Glasgow has been a powerful reminder to leaders around the world. As educators of young people and custodians of a 550 acre estate, we too need to ensure that the UN Global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are acted on in a meaningful way. This has encouraged us to look at which goals our school community can most effectively contribute to achieving. 

It would be easy to look at our large College estate, with buildings dating back to the middle of the 19th century, and wonder where to start; yet over the last five years the College has steadfastly developed and adopted plans towards becoming a more sustainable community, to consume responsibly, and to play our part in protecting the planet.  

Several projects, ideas and actions have been or are being worked upon within the Estates Team. One major project revolves around energy: we are currently investigating the possibilities of solar panels and other alternative methods of energy generation, reviewing the feasibility of moving towards an electrical fleet of operational vehicles, and installing electrical car charging points in the College grounds. After the recently completed refurbishment, the College kitchens have been installed with a new air handling unit that is energy efficient. Our Head of Catering, Hannah Bond, is committed to reduce food waste at the school; currently 65% of all food waste is recycled through an external company called Refood, which converts waste food into renewable energy. You can read more about this in the new edition of The Quad being delivered to you over the holiday. 

The pupils’ voices are also growing with an expanded Green Group this year; members span all year groups. The session on 'Careers in Sustainability' offered at the Fifth Form Careers Fair was well attended too. When we look at our OLs we can see that over 15 are global leaders in sustainability; there is plenty to inspire our current pupils. 

In 2022, the College will be publishing a dedicated Sustainability Strategy where it will lay out a full action plan taking in all aspects of the school. This will include: 

  1. Raising our pupils’ understanding of sustainability by embedding it across our curriculum and wider school activities. 

  1. Inspiring our pupils and staff to think, ask questions and signal their own commitments to sustainability.  

  1. Managing the College’s operations to be as sustainable as it can be in its activities. 

  1. Engaging our wider community of OLs and parents. 

  1. Protecting our environment and increasing biodiversity. 

The Lent Term will see a focus on these projects with a full week of cross-school activity in March for pupils and guests. This will conclude in a symposium and exhibition for Lower Sixth Pupils and Year 12 pupils from local schools. The symposium is being organised in co-operation with Target4Green, who have being working with schools around the world since 2016. The final day will draw together speakers and exhibitors from local sustainability groups as well as national and international organisations such as WWF-UK and the Whale & Dolphin Conservation Trust. We hope that this week of focus will raise pupils' understanding and engagement in the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and help to establish how the Lancing Community can contribute.