Okehampton Primary School and Foundation Unit UK Champion 2015, Totally Clued Up - Wales & West

This entry was an amazing account of the vast amount of environmental work down at the school in the last year.  Examples include making an African keyhole garden, having learned about them from a partner school, Bakary Sambouya in Gambia.  The children are also working in an area of Okehampton’s 3 acre Community Garden.

The children made reusable shopping bags using fabrics from Gambia, many of which were sold to parents and the wider community.  The children are active recyclers, making sure that no paper goes to landfill, while their food waste is all composted and packed lunch waste has been audited and steps taken to reduce what is thrown away.

Perhaps the most spectacular part of the work was the school’s new outdoor classroom, a shelter made from cob (a mixture of straw and clay) and locally-sourced timber.  Inside the shelter, the pupils helped to make a cob oven, which they then used to make pizzas using locally-sourced ingredients.

Fran Rickwood, Eco-Schools Co-ordinator at the school, said: “Environmental education is a key part of learning at Okehampton Primary.  The children are always really keen to get involved and we are trying really hard to make sure that we do all we can to reduce our impact on the environment.”

YPTE Director, Peter Littlewood, said: “This is one of the most comprehensive entries we have ever seen for the Total Green School Awards.  Okehampton Primary School has entered the Awards for many years now and it is great to see the huge amount of environmental learning that goes on there.  We were extremely impressed by how many different projects had taken place during the year and the enthusiasm of the staff, parents and children.”