Recycling in Schools

Recycling and Composting in Schools

Did you Know

Did you know on average each primary school generates around 45kg of waste per pupil per academic year and each secondary school pupil produces around 22kg Of this, 53 to 59% is card and paper.

Have you thought of setting up a recycling group in your school? Detailed below are a number of websites that could be useful if your school wants to start recycling.

The Recycle Now website has loads of good information on recycling.

Remember to use the 3'R's:

Reduce - The amount of waste that you produce.
Reuse - Things that other people may want or find a different use for them.
Recycle - As much as you can.

Listed below are a number of web links to provide resources for schools.

Waste paper recycling

Did you know that Rotherham recycled enough waste paper in 2010/11 to save 26,785 trees from being cut down (that's a forest!)

If your school would be interested in a free waste paper collections cheme, we may be able to offer you a free blue 140 litre bin for the school waste paper. If you are interested please contact streetpride on 01709 336 003.

So far the scheme has proved very popular. To date over 113 schools have paper recycling facilities.

To report any issues with recycling banks please go to:

Online Recycling Bank Report Form.

More information on paper recycling and teacher resources are available.

Composting

Composting of green waste and cardboard is an important part of managing your waste.

In 2010/11 Rotherham composted 23,000 tonnes of green waste and cardboard. This is equivalent to nearly 500,000 bags of compost!

Wrap provide a Key Stage 1 information pack School Kids building a compost bin using car tyres and a Key Stage 2 information pack

why not buy a compost bin for your school and start composting. There is lots of good composting information available.

or look at buying a subsidised compost bin from the Council.

Food waste

Did you know that around 1/3 of all the food we buy ends up being thrown away. This is not only a waste of money and resources in growing, harvesting, packaging, transporting, storing and retailing but it also contributes to global warming by producing methane.

Take a look at the Love Food Hate Waste website

Why not look at monitoring your food waste using WRAP's food waste diary. You may be surprised how much you actually waste!

Wormeries

Wormeries are a great way of processing food waste. Rotherham is School kids putting worms into compost bin currently investigating using wormeries in schools. Thirty two schools in Rotherham have a wormery. If your school would like a wormery they can be ordered from a number of retailers on the internet. There are lots of good websites on the internet that can provide advice.

Did you know that a worm can eat half of its bodyweight in waste each day?

Can recycling

Did you know that recycling one aluminium can saves enough energy to run a TV for 3 Hours?

Waste Online povides good information on metal recycling.

There is a lot of good information about recycling cans:

Steel Can Recycling Information Bureau
Think Cans (aluminium cans)

You could recycle cans at a local bring bank or scrap metal merchants. To find out where your local bring bank is contact Streetpride on 01709 336003.

Textile recycling

In Rotherham we have recycling banks provide by a number of organisations. They are a good place to recycle all types of textiles i.e. socks, trousers, jerseys, shirts blouses, old table cloths. Textiles can be re used or shredded into rags if they have tears or rips in them.

Waste Online (textile recycling)

Why not work with a local charity shop and recycle your old textiles ?

Bags for life

Did you know that most plastic shopping bags are used only once and a plastic bag can take more than 100 years to decompose! Why not buy a bag for life and help the planet. More information available:

Recycle Now (bag for life)

Direct Gov

Toner Cartridges

Why not look at recycling toner cartridges? There are lots of charities that will refill and resell empty print cartridges to raise money.

Recycle Now (toner cartridges )

Re-use

Look at promoting re-use in the school. Find out where your local charity shops are and see what can be donated rather than put into the black bin. Or why not have book swaps or a jumble sale? It's amazing what you can do with a bit of imagination.