Small Changes Can Make a Huge Difference

Students at the school continue to take every opportunity to make changes to improve the local - and global - environment.

The value of Stewardship is at the core of the school and this has been put into action in a variety of ways so far this year.

The Eco Team has presented to the whole school community on the significance of COP26, while encouraging every individual to pledge to make a small change in their behaviour to contribute towards a bigger change globally.

They have also been hard at work through the Gardening Club, composting, creating raised beds and planting flowers, fruit trees and hedgerow donated by the Woodland Trust - all designed to improve the biodiversity of the local eco-system.

Students in Key Stage 3 also contributed a number of poems to a book produced by the Richmondshire Climate Action Partnership to mark COP26, with Year 8 student Amelia's poem also published in Richmondshire Today:

Do it this way!

The forests of trees

Full of vibrant meadows

And waterfalls gushing

Where the river flows

Why do you wish it away?

You pollute all the waters

And chop down the woods

You heat up the air

So, the river floods

Why do you make it this way?

The majestic Rhino

And African Wild dog

The great orangutan

And Panamanian Golden Frog

Why do you wish them away?

You poach the rhinos

For their ivory

And fell the rainforests

As far as the eye can see

Why do you make it this way?

You can recycle your paper

Or stop eating meat

Get renewable energy

And reduce the Earth’s heat

You can take your old clothes

To the Charity Shop

You can turn off the tap

Because this needs to stop!

Why don’t you do it this way?

The quality of the work impressed Mike Sparrow of RCAP, who wrote "The capacity to express a complex issue like climate change in a concise but powerful form is a remarkable gift, and we have been deeply moved by all that we have read. Not only have you captured the essence of the plight faced by mankind, but you have articulated the strong emotional and spiritual connection that is inherent in our relationship with the Earth; the bond of duty bestowed upon us, to preserve the health of our planet and the quality of its biodiversity for the benefit of all future generations."