FARLINGTON TAKES PART IN ‘SWITCH-OFF FORTNIGHT’ AS PART OF ITS ECO INITIATIVES

08 Jan 2014

Farlington took part in Switch-Off Fortnight 2013 from 18 November to 1 December 2013 with the aim of making significant reductions in its energy usage. The whole school was involved – learning about and taking action to save energy. It was an excellent way to teach students about the energy issues and the importance of using energy efficiently. It is deliberately timed for the start of the darker and colder months when we start to use more heating and lighting,

Eco representatives from each form monitored electricity in the Senior School to compare usage year-on-year. Farlington has the Eco-Schools Silver Award status and is active in pursuing environmentally-friendly policies and activities. The girls recycle writing instruments, milk bottle tops, biscuit wrappers and yogurt pots through the TerraCycle scheme. Since 2010, over two tonnes of textiles have been collected through the Rag Bag scheme which recycles textiles and ships higher quality clothing to Africa.

In terms of conservation, Year 7’s have recently constructed a bug mansion from hay, bamboo, guttering, flower pots, sticks and bricks by our lake and are currently planting the area with bee and butterfly-friendly flowers. The Prep School will have its own bug mansion soon.

Chris Snewin, Physics teacher and Staff Eco Representative, said, “The benefits of sustaining our eco-standards extend beyond the improvement of the environmental quality of the school. It gives the pupils a sense of responsibility and pride in what they have achieved. With this comes the hope that the pupils will continue this behaviour in the wider community.’