Environmentally aware students have been building bug houses, composting and ditching plastic straws as part of efforts to tackle climate change in celebration of Earth Day 2020.

This year marked the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, which was launched in 1970 as a unified worldwide response to a global environment in crisis.

Students from Years 7-10 were asked to find out their Carbon Footprint and tasked with a number of challenges to become more eco-friendly.

The project was set by Head of Geography, Ms H Lane. Challenges included building bird and bug houses, using reusable straws, planting trees, switching to energy efficient lightbulbs, making homemade cleaning products, unplugging unused devices and making a call to action to share on social media.

Ms Lane said: “We received a number of entries for the competition, with hundreds of students working out their Carbon Footprint.
“Thank you to everyone who entered; it’s brilliant to see so many students making conscious decisions to be more eco-friendly.
“Our students have really gone above and beyond in the fight against climate change.”

Six students - Jasleen Phagura, Freya Perry, Hollie Lewis, Toni Bird, Emily Hodson and Anjali Patel - have been chosen as winners and will each receive a reusable straw and biodegradable reusable cup when they return to school.

The competition comes after Highfields launched a series of initiatives to improve the environment.

Before school was forced to shut amidst the coronavirus pandemic, there had already been a shift in the school’s use of single-use plastics, with wooden cutlery made available as an alternative in the school’s eating areas.

There are also plans to launch additional initiatives, including providing stainless steel, reusable bottles for every student and introducing recycling bins on every floor.