Thanks to our Tesco Community Grant we were able to take our Bright New Futures Roadshow to St Mary’s CofE Primary School in Pulborough on the 22nd July .
This is a large school with a new teacher leading their Eco activities. We started the planning process with the school many months in advance, then when the timing was right for the school from a covid and school activities plus the weather we agreed a date. We had two onsite meetings and many hours were spent working out the timetabling. We had to factor in staggered arrival, lunch and departure times of classes due to covid precautions. The BBC were supposed to be filming the event however due to bad weather we had to postpone the day and the BBC were unable to attend the second date.
We spent the day with 133 Early Years and KS1 pupils and their teachers, sharing with them our knowledge and our vision for a flourishing and sustainable future. In particular the children learnt how we can all help take care of the planet through small actions which, together, have a significant effect.
The children explored our Inspiration Eco Station (a retro-fitted milk float) learning about eco-homes and gardens, clothes and recycling and they were encouraged to collect single use plastics for our TerraCycle scheme.
At the Mobile Woodland School Theatre the children played games that demonstrated the wonders of food chains, woodlands and mycelium. We showed them 25 species of young trees in pots and discussed the ways in which trees support wildlife and provide us with medicine.
Nicola Peel led the Wheel of Fortune gameshow in the school forest area, exploring subjects like hope and the future, nature food and energy.
At the end of the day everyone sang “Be the Change” and the children were given a “take home action plan” to help them share their knowledge with family and friends and make changes to reduce their carbon footprints. We told everyone about Sussex Green Living, our aims and our activities, and we encouraged people to take advantage of our services
Our visit to St Mary’s CofE Primary School was one in a series of events and appearances that the Roadshow has been making throughout the summer. With very little funding available, and our heavy reliance on volunteers and the goodwill of our professional partners, the Tesco funding was an invaluable contribution to our programme, enabling us to take the Bright New Futures Roadshow to St Mary’s for the whole day.
The weather was kind, the children and teachers were engaged and receptive and responded enthusiastically to all the activities. For us, facilitators and volunteers, their interest and appreciation were in themselves a splendid reward for all our time and effort.
This is what the children and eco lead said about their day:
Supported by
We are grateful to Horsham District Council and Sussex Community Foundation for grants to help us get our Inspiration Eco Station (1974 retrofitted milk float) on the road! And to Tesco Community Grant which enabled us to take the roadshow to work with Kingslea School. Learn more about this grant here.
And finally to Universal Trailers in Coneyhurst for lending us a trailer when we need to transport the float beyond its range, we did not in this instance!
