Primary is flying the flag for its eco work
School picks up sixth green accolade in 12 years
Arkleston Primary School is celebrating being ecofriendly longer than some of its pupils have been alive.
For the last 12 years, the Renfrew school has been working hard to make sure environmental awareness and action are an important part of the life and ethos of the school.
And it’s now been awarded its sixth green flag in recognition of the hard work of all its staff and pupils.
Headteacher Carolyn Crawford, said: “Our former deputy head started the green flag process 12 years ago and our new deputy head took it over.
“It’s just been sustaining the good work that’s been done already.
“It continues to grow and grow over the years. We’re only the second school in Renfrewshire to get its sixth green flag which makes us one of the few in Renfrewshire to have sustained our work over an extensive period of time.
“This is down to the hard work and commitment of everyone on the team and in particular Mrs Mitchell and Mrs McManus, who evidenced our journey for the assessors.
“We are proud of this achievement and will continue to ensure that learning for sustainability is a priority area for us moving forward.”
Eco-Schools Scotland offers schools a choice of ten topics to engage with from food and the environment to litter or energy.
Arkleston focused on global goal three – health and well-being and the topics of litter, school grounds and global citizenship on its green flag award journey.
The Scottish Eco- Schools programme is regarded as worldleading with almost every young person in Scotland playing a part in driving environmental excellence forward.
Now the pupils and educators at the Renfrew school can proudly say they are engaged in a real movement, across over 60 countries in five continents, striving to improve our environment through learning for sustainability.
Derek Robertson, chief executive of Keep Scotland Beautiful, which runs the programme, said: “Congratulations to the ecocommittee and all other pupils and staff at Arkleston Primary School who worked so hard to achieve the sixth green flag award.
“Keep Scotland Beautiful is committed to supporting all our children and young people to develop the capacities, skills and attributes required for learning, living and working in a changing environment and world.”