Reducing carbon emissions, saving money and winning a prestigious award is the triple-winning success story for Ringmer Community College in East Sussex, winner of this year's Ashden Awards for Sustainable Energy Schools category. With escalating fuel prices and widespread concern over climate change, the inspiring work undertaken by students and staff shows how putting energy saving at the heart of the school's ethos has cut CO2 emissions and saved money on the college's fuel bills.
A quarter of the college's students have volunteered to be Eco Reps and everyone is committed to the sustainability drive. The job of the Eco Reps is to cut energy use, 'name and shame' wasteful departments and promote their achievements to others, including trainee teachers. The college boasts a wind turbine and solar PV array and students have helped design the new sixth form building which will be heated using a ground source heat pump. Together the current energy initiatives save the college over £14,000 a year on energy bills.
Second-prize winner, receiving £5,000, is Sandhills Primary School Oxfordshire that uses a pupils' watchdog energy team to help the school caretaker minimise energy consumption for heat and light. Pupils organise energy competitions and they helped raise funds for the wind turbine that is going to supply up to a quarter of the school's electricity needs.
For further details of prize winners at this year's Ashden Awards and advice on how your school can apply for the 2009 awards visit www.ashdenawards.org
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