Reduce, Reuse, Recycle: Housebuilder encourages Leighton Buzzard children to protect the planet

The local housebuilder, who is behind the Clipstone Park development in Leighton Buzzard, brought together three primary schools to participate, with the winning school receiving a bench made from recycled materials.

The campaign, headed up by Recycle Now, runs each October. This year’s theme is ‘missed capture’, which is all about the items that can be recycled but are commonly missed in the home. With this in mind, Barratt David Wilson North Thames tasked students from Greenleas Lower School Kestrel Way, Greenleas Lower School Derwent Road and Dovery Academy with finding as many items as possible in the school to recycle, making them consciously think about what they can and cannot include.

Providing each school with a set of biodegradable bin bags, the competition ran throughout the week in a race against time to see which school could fill as many bags as possible. Not only were the children challenged to recycle the most amount of rubbish, but they also gained a better understanding of the importance of recycling, forming a newfound appreciation of how it can affect the planet. The joint winning schools were Greenleas Lower School Derwent Road and Dovery Academy who were both rewarded with a new three-seated bench made from recycled materials. The students from Greenleas Lower School Kestrel Way were also given a selection of eco-friendly pencils.

Marc Woolfe, Director of Sales & Marketing for Barratt David Wilson North Thames, comments: “It was fantastic to see pupils at all the participating schools battle it out for such a great cause. At Barratt David Wilson North Thames, we want to educate as many of the next generation as possible when it comes to all things surrounding the environment, and by this practical task we believe we achieved this. We are so proud of all the pupils who participated in the competition, and we hope that each student has learnt the importance of recycling for our health and environment, with their own efforts now directly protecting our planet.”

Mrs Rebecca Clarke, Headteacher at Greenleas Lower School (Derwent Road and Kestrel Way) adds: “National Recycling Week has been a pleasure to be involved with and certainly one to remember. It was fantastic to see all the pupils be so heavily engaged with the activity, with their eagerness to win being driven not only by being in competition against other schools, but also wanting to better our planet. Of course, the icing on the cake was our winners receiving the bench made of recycled materials for our Derwent Road site and our eco-friendly pencils at our Kestrel Way site - it was certainly a treat as we head into Christmas!”

Sarah Cavender, Headteacher at Dovery Academy, concludes: “Now more than ever, we want to equip our pupils with the best knowledge of their environment and how to look after it as much as possible, and their participation in this competition has bettered their understanding. What an honour it has been for our school to participate in such an important cause and to receive a bench as a prize. Not only was the competition incredibly fun for our students to partake in, but it also gave them insight into the importance of recycling and the impact it has on our planet. It was so heart-warming to see the students ask questions, being mindful about each piece of rubbish, and truly valuing their importance in protecting our planet.”

Homes at Clipstone Park are built with sustainability in mind and energy efficiency at the forefront of the design, achieving an EPC A or B rating saving homeowners an average of £2,200 per year on bills[1]. There is a range of the highest efficiency technology incorporated in homes, including: A-rated condensing boilers; low heat-loss hot water cylinders which ensure water stays hotter for longer; and water saving features and fittings helping to save up to 25 litres of water a day per person. The wider consortium of developers at Clipstone Park all have a common goal to reduce their impact on the environment. Wildlife is prioritised with over 200 trees planted and the introduction of wildflower meadows, hedgehog highways, bird boxes and the inclusion of native plants and hibernacula.

Currently available at Clipstone Park is a selection of three and four-bedroom homes with prices starting at £375,000 for a three-bedroom house.

For more information about Barratt David Wilson North Thames call 0333 355 8500 / 0333 355 8501 or visit www.barratthomes.co.uk / www.dwh.co.uk

[1] https://www.barratthomes.co.uk/efficiency-built-in/energy-efficient-homes/