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Print articleCornwall Life Skills Forum has presented the awards in recognition of the work of the school's Year 5 and 6 children towards an on-going recycling campaign.
The project started a year ago when the children began looking at the issues of pollution and sustainability in Cornwall and worldwide. Concerned by the damage being done to the planet, the children decided to take an active role in improving the environment. The school began recycling as much of its waste as possible and letters were sent to parents explaining the benefits of recycling at home.
The school now recycles around six bags of plastic, 50kg of paper and cardboard and three bags of cans every fortnight.
Steve Wilson, learning leader, said:
?The real success of the project isn't so much in the volume of waste recycled, although that has been impressive, but the culture of recycling that has developed. The children have become really involved in the project and have pushed this enthusiasm onto their parents. The younger children in the school have also started to become actively involved by bringing in waste and being educated by the older children in school assemblies.?
Pelynt School plans to continue its work in educating parents and younger children about green issues and is gradually increasing the amount it recycles. There are also plans to start composting this summer with the compost eventually being used for the school garden. The school has also purchased a solar panel and hopes to start generating some of its own power.
Councillor Margaret Allen, Caradon's Local Environment portfolio holder, said:
?I'm delighted to see local children getting so involved in green issues and am very pleased that their work has been recognised with Life-Skills Awards. As the children of Pelynt School have shown, recycling is a simple step that we can all take to help look after our environment.?
Cornwall Life Skills Forum is made up of representatives from Cornwall's district councils and the police. It presents Life-Skills Awards to schools and pupils that promote road and home safety, health and sustainability issues. Bronze awards go to classes or schools undertaking group projects, while Silver and Gold awards are made to individual students undertaking specialised projects at district Hazard Alley junior life skills events and the Flashpoint Safety Centre in Bodmin respectively.
