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Young horticulturalists win council’s ‘gRRReen’ competition
17/03/2015
A group of young horticulturalists from Cirencester Deer Park School are celebrating after winning the first prize of £1,000 in Cotswold District Council’s first ever ‘gRRReen’ awards competition.
The competition ran for three months during late 2014 and early 2015, and entrants were encouraged to identify innovative ways to Reuse, Recycle and Reduce waste.
The competition ran for three months during late 2014 and early 2015, and entrants were encouraged to identify innovative ways to Reuse, Recycle and Reduce waste.
A panel of judges was particularly impressed with the winning entry from Cirencester Deer Park School. Led by Chris Germaine, the applied learning co-ordinator at the school, a group of 30 students have developed an organic plot – with raised beds and a polytunnel – on what was previously waste land.
They make their own compost and leaf mould to produce excellent plants and organic produce, most of which is sold to members of the school community.
They have also re-used old wooden pallets, which would have been burnt, to make benches for outdoor use, and have created planters from old wood.
However, their future plans are especially noteworthy as they strive to build on their success and embrace the wider community.
Cllr Sue Coakley, CDC’s cabinet member for the environment, said: “This entry stood out because it had so many ‘RRR’ plus points.
“Since the group started up two years ago they have redirected two tonnes of potential landfill waste to compost bins. The students are also gaining horticultural skills and qualifications, as well as developing their abilities to solve problems and tackle challenges as a team.
“Further afield, they have worked in tandem with a similar project at a school in India to compare notes and share advice. They also set up a ‘Trashformers’ project to create and sell usable products from potential waste, which raised funds to purchase geometry sets for Indian orphans.
“In particular, we felt that the Cirencester Deer Park group’s plans for the future were worthy of the £1,000 prize. They aim to invest some of the money in solar energy to power lighting in the polytunnel and they also want to expand their rain water harvesting.
“This will equip them better to fulfill their objective of broadening the appeal of sustainable gardening both within and beyond the school.
“In fact, they have already forged links with local community groups such as The Phoenix Gardeners. They are also very imaginative and one of their future aims is to build a new greenhouse from used plastic drinks bottles.”
A delighted Chris Germaine said: “The students have worked so hard on this horticultural project, often putting in many extra hours, and it makes it all worthwhile when we receive such a glowing accolade – and a generous cash prize courtesy of Ubico Ltd.
“The £1,000 funding will enable us to expand this fantastic school resource and spread the word to others about the many direct and indirect benefits of sustainable gardening.”
Cirencester Deer Park School headteacher Chiquita Henson said: “I am thrilled that Chris Germaine’s and our young horticulturalists’ environmental and enterprise skills have been recognised. Our pupils are proud of their achievements and remain keen to promote both re- and up-cycling.”
Cllr Coakley added: “I should mention that many of our residents do get the ‘gRRReen’ message – recycling levels in this district are the highest in Gloucestershire. Nevertheless, tonnage figures have dipped, and we hope that new ideas such as the Cirencester Deer Park initiative will catch on and help to boost our totals again.”
They make their own compost and leaf mould to produce excellent plants and organic produce, most of which is sold to members of the school community.
They have also re-used old wooden pallets, which would have been burnt, to make benches for outdoor use, and have created planters from old wood.
However, their future plans are especially noteworthy as they strive to build on their success and embrace the wider community.
Cllr Sue Coakley, CDC’s cabinet member for the environment, said: “This entry stood out because it had so many ‘RRR’ plus points.
“Since the group started up two years ago they have redirected two tonnes of potential landfill waste to compost bins. The students are also gaining horticultural skills and qualifications, as well as developing their abilities to solve problems and tackle challenges as a team.
“Further afield, they have worked in tandem with a similar project at a school in India to compare notes and share advice. They also set up a ‘Trashformers’ project to create and sell usable products from potential waste, which raised funds to purchase geometry sets for Indian orphans.
“In particular, we felt that the Cirencester Deer Park group’s plans for the future were worthy of the £1,000 prize. They aim to invest some of the money in solar energy to power lighting in the polytunnel and they also want to expand their rain water harvesting.
“This will equip them better to fulfill their objective of broadening the appeal of sustainable gardening both within and beyond the school.
“In fact, they have already forged links with local community groups such as The Phoenix Gardeners. They are also very imaginative and one of their future aims is to build a new greenhouse from used plastic drinks bottles.”
A delighted Chris Germaine said: “The students have worked so hard on this horticultural project, often putting in many extra hours, and it makes it all worthwhile when we receive such a glowing accolade – and a generous cash prize courtesy of Ubico Ltd.
“The £1,000 funding will enable us to expand this fantastic school resource and spread the word to others about the many direct and indirect benefits of sustainable gardening.”
Cirencester Deer Park School headteacher Chiquita Henson said: “I am thrilled that Chris Germaine’s and our young horticulturalists’ environmental and enterprise skills have been recognised. Our pupils are proud of their achievements and remain keen to promote both re- and up-cycling.”
Cllr Coakley added: “I should mention that many of our residents do get the ‘gRRReen’ message – recycling levels in this district are the highest in Gloucestershire. Nevertheless, tonnage figures have dipped, and we hope that new ideas such as the Cirencester Deer Park initiative will catch on and help to boost our totals again.”
