Teaming up to save the planet!

Environmental awareness is an important part of life at Leighton Park. Quakers seek to maintain the beauty and variety of the world. Leighton Park is not just a school in a park, but a park with a school in it. The environment features prominently across the curriculum and pupils address environmental issues in activities such as the Save the Planet group and Eco-Fryer.

Save the Planet

Save the planet is for all in the senior houses at Leighton Park.  We have been awarded the Silver Eco-School Award and will soon start working towards the Green Flag Award; as part of this the Save the Planet group, in conjunction with the Science Department, have carried out an environmental review and created an action plan which has been shared with the school community.

Naomi Alderson, IB student, summarises the recent activity of the group. “The Save the Planet group is a small team of green-minded people led by eco-resident Sally Pearce. We meet every week in a variety of different venues including a classroom in Townson, our vegetable plot by the orchard, a garden bench outside Caradon and anywhere else our action takes us"
.
Current Project
Development of the Tree Trail: This will be a nature and art trail for the whole community to enjoy, as well as groups from the wider, Reading community. It will combine conservation education, wildlife education and art in a trail.

The community is invited to help build the trail by laying bark, erecting informative posts or designing sculptures. The PTA has already joined in by kindly sponsoring the entrance sign.

Past Achievements

• Introduction of recycling bins around the school

• Awareness campaign about the difference little actions like switching off lights can make

• Planting trees on the Park that were kindly donated to us by the Woodland Trust.

Find out more

The group is always open to new members and new ideas, so if you want to know more then speak to Sally Pearce. If that's not for you but you still want to be involved, take an active break from revision by joining one of the trail building sessions in the summer of 2010 – gardening gloves will be provided!

Group members with our guest tree expert Rupert Taylor. Rupert helped us to decide which trees to include in the trail.

Eco-Fryer

Eco-Fryer is available to all Year 7 and 8 pupils interested in getting involved in hands-on environmental projects around the Park.

Current Projects

• Constructing runner bean wigwams

• Creating compost bins out of scrap and recycled materials

• Thinking up innovative and environmentally friendly ways of keeping hungry wildlife away from our seedlings! 

• Looking into natural pest control

• Learning how to build 'bug hotels' to attract friendly mini-beasts to their plot to help control the pests when spring rolls around 

Past Achievements

• Construction of the successful Eco-Fryer allotment and growing herbs, vegetables and salad leaves

• Researching allotment vegetables

• Creating fact sheets to make an allotment manual

• Making bird boxes to put up around the grounds

• Planting chillies, peas and trees

During the summer term 2009 EcoFryer won a B&Q grant as part of the ‘One Planet Living Grant’ Scheme run by the DIY store. The grant has enabled the group to purchase new tools and equipment to help us create an area for teaching, as well as a space for growing produce that will be used in the Fryer House kitchen.