Pupils from Beckwithshaw School have proved that pupil
pressure does work. They have persuaded the
Beckwithshaw Village Hall Committee to provide a mini-recycling
site in the car park, which has now been added to Harrogate Borough
Council's growing list of over 100 mini-recycling sites located
around the district.
Following a visit late last year from the council's recycling
promotions officer who gave a talk to the school on why we all have
to reduce waste and recycle more, the children wrote to
Beckwithshaw Village Hall requesting that it hosts a mini-recycling
site and, despite being rejected a few times, they kept on
badgering and have finally succeeded.
To celebrate on their return to school after the school
holidays, pupils who wrote some of the letters will be among the
first to use the mini-recycling site and will be getting rid of
some of their Easter treat packaging.
Headteacher, Caroline Wright, said: "We are
a very environmentally conscious school and our pupils already
actively promote recycling by bringing things from home to put in
the school's boxes which we have been taking to the household waste
recycling centre on Wetherby Road. This site in
the village is going to prove very valuable to residents and the
council who have hard reaching recycling targets to
meet. And it is, of course, aimed at protecting
the next generation.
"We are grateful to the Village Hall Committee for agreeing to
host the mini-recycling site at the Village Hall."
Pupils kept up the pressure throughout November and December
by writing letters imploring the Village Hall Committee to
re-consider:
"Beckwithshaw would like to recycle and stop filling up the
landfill because it is getting full...we don't have one near by
this village and the council has told us the reasons why we should
recycle, because we can reuse things again and again...it is also
good because when the school kitchen gets deliveries there's quite
a lot of rubbish...an expert came to school and gave us a pencil
recycled from a plastic cup...and no rubbish will be blowing around
because the council will clean it when it is
full". ENDS
PHOTO OPPORTUNITY: 10.30 am
Wednesday, 26 March 2006 at Beckwithshaw Village Hall.
FURTHER INFORMATION: Mr Simon Johnson,
Head of Environment on 01423 556845.