Primary and special schools are taking part in a project to increase recycling in the area while being rewarded for their efforts from a prize fund of £10,000.
The prize fund is an investment in the future as the activities will encourage more recycling, less waste and result in on-going savings to the local taxpayers with less material going to landfill.
Starting from February, pupils will ask friends and family to make a pledge to recycle more of their rubbish each week. The more pledges a school collects, the more points they will save, which can be put towards a range of prizes such as computers, musical instruments and sports equipment. And the more that people recycle, the more points the school can collect.
The project, called Recycling Rewards for Schools is being run until July 2013 by Ainsworth and Parkinson on behalf of the Council using Government funding. Nearly 60 schools have signed up to take part.
Councillor David Dixon (Lib-Dem, Oldfield), Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods, said, “It is really important that recycling is promoted to children and young people because they will take on the challenge of tackling climate change in future decades.
“Bath & North East Somerset Council is building upon our excellent record of supporting residents to recycle by encouraging children to apply what they learn into the home and inspire their family to become more eco-friendly. The scheme is a great way to achieve this aim, whilst also rewarding local schools for helping to spread the word.”
Julia Battersby, Joint Head Teacher at Peasedown Primary School, said, “The school recognises the value of improving the recycling habits of our pupils and welcomes the chance to achieve some incentives along the way. We are really looking forward to playing our part in this exciting scheme.”
By recycling more, the amount of waste going to landfill is reduced which helps cut the amount of Landfill Tax paid by the local taxpayer. It saves resources and energy which reduces the impact of climate change. Materials recycled are made into many useful products including cans, bottles, parts of machinery and jewellery.
