Did you know that 95% of plastic packaging is discarded after a single use or, that if we don’t tackle the problem, the plastic in the sea could weigh more than the fish by 2050?*

To help stem the plastic tide, the Eco Club at Blackheath High School have been following the Surfers Against Sewage (SAS) Plastic Free Schools campaign. Club members encouraged students and staff to pledge to remove three items of single-use plastic from their daily lives, they wrote to MPs, challenged plastic packaging manufacturers, worked with the School Council and Accent, our catering team, to reduce single-use plastics in the canteen and much more. Their efforts were rewarded last month when SAS confirmed that the school has achieved Plastic Free Schools status. 

The project has given an insight into the difference individual actions can make, but it doesn’t end there. An important part of the project is the commitment to creating a plastic free legacy for the future. 

With that in mind, the Eco Club undertook a Waste Week fact-finding mission and took part in the Great British Spring Clean. They cleared 316 pieces of litter from the Heath, over 80% of which was plastic or plastic mixed with other materials. Undaunted, they made a huge difference, returning a badly littered area to beautiful heath and woodland and earning themselves well-deserved end of term certificates for being determined eco-warriors!

* Source