Eco-friendly pupils plan roof garden (From Harrow Times)

Eco-friendly pupils plan roof garden

3:55pm Wednesday 12th January 2005

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GREEN pupils at a Stanmore school have come up with the ideal way to make their school environmentally friendly - planting grass and plants on its flat roof.

The enviromental group of Park High School, in Thistlecroft Gardens, came up with the idea as part of its "Action on Waste" initiative, working towards their Ecoschool Silver Award. The so-called "living roof" would act as heat insulation as well as recycling the school's water and carbon dioxide.

Science teacher and Assistant Head Alan Shorter, who is a keen supporter of the idea, wants to petition the council for the funding to put the project on trial.

He said: "It is an exciting plan, which is perfect for us because we have so many flat rooves in the school. The group are trying to look at ways we can make a real difference within a short time span, and this caught the imagination because it would also be attractive to look at. One day perhaps it will be possible to look over the school from a helicopter and see nothing but green."

Other environmental initiatives at the school include a recycling drive and a bid to cut down on waste by reusing materials like paper and plastic. The pupils calculated that the school produces up to 200 kilos of waste a day, and have set about reducing this figure.

Alan said: "For years and years we have been trying to come up with something tangible to make the school a bit greener. Now we have a group of year 10 and 11 pupils who are organising a range of projects and really looking to change the culture of the school. In December we had an Action on Waste' day, where we did a litter trawl through the school and came up with an action plan. The kids have set an ambitious target to reduce the school's waste by 55%."

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