Winner:
Lutley Primary School
Lutley Primary School in Halesowen was awarded it’s bronze Eco-School award in 2006 and silver in 2007. In March 2010, the school was awarded it’s prestigious Eco-School green flag award, which symbolises excellence in the field of environmental activity and is assessed by Keep Britain Tidy.
The pupils take environmental leadership through the school’s Eco Council, who monitor energy usage throughout the school, involving all pupils. The Eco Council has created the Little Lutley Green Guide to help pupils’ families learn from the eco schools work including energy saving, recycling, growing your own food and gardening for wildlife. The school hosted the very first Halesowen Schools Eco Conference in May 2011 to share ideas with other local schools.
The efforts of the Eco Council are paying-off, with energy savings being made across the school, resulting in reduced bills and carbon dioxide emissions. In March 2011, the Lutley Primary School was one of four finalists in the National Climate Week Awards for Best Educational Initiative. One outcome of the May 2011 Eco Conference is Halesowen school teachers investigating setting up an online resource for ongoing joint learning between schools.
Further information can be found at www.lutley.dudley.sch.uk
Commended:
The High Arcal School
The High Arcal School, Sedgley is a large science specialist secondary school that was awarded a bronze Eco-School award in 2009 and silver in 2010. In May 2011, the school was awarded it’s prestigious Eco-School green flag award, which symbolises excellence in the field of environmental activity and is assessed by Keep Britain Tidy.
The School’s Sustainability Group includes governors, pupils, Oval and Tudor Tenants and Residents Association members, the schools Business Manager and Energy Champion. It delivers an energy management policy in a whole-school approach, including; replacing inefficient hot water tanks; installing energy efficient lighting; reducing use of electrical equipment; installing an efficient centralised print service; and Form 9AD and the Oval and Tudor members creating a garden for wildlife to grow food to eat, thus reducing food miles.
Only one tenth of the previous hot water volume is now heated due and the electricity usage in the school decreased by almost £2,000 in 2010/11 over a 6 month period compared to the previous year. Around £30,000 a year has been saved in paper and ink due to the new centralised service. The Sustainability Group will continue to develop projects and monitor energy savings and are investigating photovoltaic solar panels, a wind turbine and a woodchip-fired heating system.
Hillcrest School and Community College
Hillcrest School and Community College is a comprehensive community school with 910 pupils aged 11 to 16 years in Netherton. The school received their Bronze and Silver Eco-School awards in summer 2010 to recognise their achievements for raising pupil’s environmental awareness.
The schools science department planned an “Eco Week” which took place in May 2011 to help pupils and members of staff think about climate change and how they could be more sustainable and eco-friendly. A number of workshops, activities and presentations took place including energy saving, re-use and recycling. The pupils made energy saving pledges including riding their bicycles to school and not leaving their TV’s on standby.
The pupils who made the biggest contribution to the Eco Week were awarded a special certificate to recognise their efforts. A group of pupil volunteers called ‘Eco Warriors’ will be responsible for monitoring ongoing energy saving activities in the school such as turning off lights, computers, projectors, and speakers at the end of the day, and monitoring car usage.
Further information can be found at www.hillcrest.dudley.sch.uk
Recognised:
Old Park School
Old Park School is located on the Russell’s Hall estate near Dudley and is a specialist school that teaches pupils from 3 – 19 years old with learning difficulties. Old Park School was received an Eco-Schools Bronze award in March 2010.
The Eco Warriors are a team of pupils who work with and encourage other pupils to reduce waste and promote recycling. The team is led by pupil Chris Becks who is an inspiration for others to get involved. The Eco Warriors designed colourful logos for all the recycling bins, which are located in every class room for the collection of paper and glass.. The pupils take the paper and glass to the recycling centre each week and sort it into the appropriate bins.
Chris’ leadership has resulted in new members joining the Eco Warriors as older members leave the school. The recycling activity encourages participation in environmentally friendly activities in the school, provides opportunities to develop teamwork within the Eco Warriors and helps to build the pupils’ confidence.
Further information can be found at www.dudley.gov.uk/education-and-learning/schools-and-colleges/thorns-community-learning-village.
Belle Vue Primary School
Belle Vue Primary School in Wordsley has approximately 450 pupils and was awarded their Bronze and Silver Eco Schools awards in the summer of 2010. Everyone at the School is actively involved in energy saving activity through the work of the School Council and monthly newsletter to parents.
In the autumn of 2010, the school participated in the “Pod’s Switch Off Fortnight” with a special assembly to encourage all pupils to turn the lights and computers off when they are not being used. Pupils have participated in a range of eco activities that have enabled them to raise money for a new cycle shelter to encourage older children to cycle to school instead of being driven by their parents. Other activities have included participating in Green Britain Day, recycling, the school’s Environment Club growing food to reduce food miles.
The outcome of these awareness rising activities is that the school is saving energy by staff and pupils turning off lights and electrical equipment when not being used, which has been proven by undertaking monitoring surveys. The Environment Club has also been successfully in gaining two grandparents to volunteer with the Club and informing the whole school and pupil’s parents of activities by a monthly newsletter and accessible notice board.
Winner:
Transition Stourbridge
Transition Stourbridge is a community-based environmental group based in and around Stourbridge and is part of the Transition Towns Initiative. The group looks at how everyone can travel, work, shop, grow food and provide for themselves and their community in a more sustainable way.
Transition Stourbridge has worked with a leading social enterprise, Marches Energy Agency, to recruit and train volunteers to deliver 1-to-1 free home energy checks. The checks calculate the household’s carbon footprint and helps them look at simple ways to reduce energy use in the home, and signposts them to renewable energy technology schemes. The ultimate aim of the activity is to reduce energy usage in households, thereby reducing carbon dioxide emissions.
A total of five volunteers were trained through Transition Stourbridge over several weeks to gain a certificate of achievement in home energy conservation. 17 households in the Stourbridge area have so far received home energy checks, totalling carbon dioxide savings of 637 tonnes, which is enough to fill 125 hot air balloons. The volunteers will continue to undertake home energy checks, on request by householders.
Further Information can be found at http://transitionstourbridge.wordpress.com/
Recognised:
Worcester Diocesan Board of Finance
The Worcester Diocese covers more than 600 square miles including the Dudley Borough and exists to help people to share their faith and church based communities. In line with Church of England’s commitment to reduce their carbon footprint by 80% by 2050, the Worcester Diocesan Board of Finance Ltd has designed a new vicarage to the very highest environmental rating for domestic buildings.
The vicarage is designed using the criteria of the German Passivhaus; a building standard that focuses on reducing energy use and the requirement for artificial heating while creating high levels of indoor comfort. The design uses solar gain and the heat generated from daily living activities to provide heat that is then retained by very high levels of insulation. Hot water will be generated by solar thermal panels and electricity will be provided by solar photovoltaic panels.
The vicarage is currently being constructed after a complex design process that has taken three years, and is planned to be completed in autumn 2010. The vicarage is being constructed from buildings materials that are made using a minimal amount of energy and recycled materials. The house will not require any additional electricity use and the design ensures the Vicarage will have no no net carbon dioxide emissions.
Further information can be found at www.cofe-worcester.org.uk
Stourbridge Cricket Club
Stourbridge Cricket Club located in Amblecote is a community based organisation that provides cricketing and social opportunities for local people. The club was established in 1842 with First Class Cricket being played there from 1905 – 1981, currently the club play in Division One of The Worcestershire County League.
Stourbridge Cricket Club reduces and monitors its energy usage through putting their Environmental Policy into practice including general housekeeping, waste minimisation, fair trade and use of local suppliers. In 2010, the club had a feasibility study carried for the Community Sustainable Energy Programme to address potential for energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies.
Stourbridge Cricket Club have installed energy efficient lighting to yield an annual carbon saving of half a tonne and financial saving of £68.00. The club has made successful applications for capital funding for the installation of solar photovoltaic panels and solar thermal panels as well as a 360 litre twin coil hot water cylinder. The intention is to install the solar technologies on the south facing roof during the summer of 2011.
Further information can be found at http://stourbridgecc.webplus.net
Winner:
Catherine Maguire and Lawrence Rowlett
Catherine and Lawrence live in a 1920s semi detached house in Stourbridge. The house is constructed from solid brick walls, so that the house is not as easy to insulate as walls with cavities, leading to an energy-inefficient home that is difficult to keep warm.
One part of their house was insulated by using Thermafleece sheep’s wool insulation attached to the inside wall using battens spread at regular intervals, then covered with wood panelling. Another part of the house was insulated using Sempertap, which is a 1cm thick latex based material attached to the outside wall. In September 2010, 12 solar photovoltaic panels were installed to generate electricity for use in the house and to benefit from the feed-in-tariff.
Catherine and Lawrence carried out the work themselves and though they said it was a challenge, they have immense satisfaction from completing the work and from now living in a warm, energy efficient home. The three measures they installed have reduced the couple’s energy bills and their carbon footprint. Catherine is a member of community and environment organisation Transition Stourbridge, so will have good opportunity to share their experiences.
Commended:
Kevin Whittingham
The Wordsley Eco Home is a four bedroom detached house designed and built by the owner, Kevin Whittingham, to reduce his family’s energy use. Features include the collection and reuse of rainwater and the generation of electricity from natural sources. Since winning a special Energy Heroes Award in 2010, Kevin has continued to build on previous achievements.
In January 2011, Kevin installed ten solar photovoltaic panels on the south facing roof to generate electricity for use in the home and to sell back to the National Grid through feed-in-tariffs. Kevin has encouraged local people to visit his home has visits from schools and community organisations, for them to learn about his experiences and the technologies in his home to consider how they can incorporate similar in to their own properties.
In the first three months since installing the solar photovoltaic panels, they have produced 300 kilowatts of electricity and Kevin plans to install a water heating system later in 2011 powdered by the solar panels. With the rain water harvesting and grey water recycling Kevin’s whole family use the same amount of water in a year as 1 person would use in a day. Plus, no waste water is put into the sewerage system at is kept on site and purified for use.
Recognised:
Kim Cherry - Black Country Housing Group
The Black Country Housing Group is a housing association and regeneration agency that works across the whole of the Black Country. The Group is widely respected for their innovative work on energy saving issues. Kimberley Cherry is employed by the Group as a Project Associate and is newly responsible for management of the organisation’s energy use.
Kimberley co-ordinates the reading of energy meters at the buildings that the Group manages on behalf of residents including sheltered housing and blocks of flats. By also compiling local weather data, Kimberley can identify real changes in fuel use to ensure that the most appropriate energy saving measures and heating upgrades are installed. Kimberley plays a proactive role working with tenants help them reduce energy use and has visited communities with a special road show that provides tenants with vital information on energy efficiency.
Through energy saving and negotiating energy supplies, Kimberley has saved the Group tens of thousands of pounds in energy bills, enabling the Group to spend that money on their tenants in other ways and investing in further energy saving measures, Through the implementation of no cost energy saving measures, tenants can reduce their fuel bills by around £15,000. Kimberley has also inspired other members of staff to save energy in the office.
Further information can be found at www.bcha.co.uk
