Thanks to the collaboration of the whole school community in support of e-waste awareness, Rydal Penrhos has been awarded £500 as part of a recycling promotion by UK electronic retailer Currys.

Rydal Penrhos aims to provide an education for the 21st century and to do so without proper acknowledgement of the global environmental crisis would be impossible. That is why the theme features not just within classroom lessons, but across all parts of school life.

Prep and Senior pupils have the opportunity to take being green into their own hands by joining the Eco Committee, which drives the environmental agenda in school and has been involved in campaigns as varied as turning off the lights for Earth Hour, reducing food waste in the school’s Dining Halls to the planting of new trees last spring as part of the Queen’s Green Canopy initiative.

While our pupils belong to a generation that have experienced environmental matters as a core part of their curriculum and the wider culture around them, people across the Rydal Penrhos community have a keen awareness of the issue and try to play their part. This includes our parents, whose environmental good citizenship has earned the school a reward from a familiar household brand.

In 2022, British electronics retailer Currys held a promotion to spread the word regarding its recycling initiative. When individuals donated an item of e-waste for recycling, their child’s school had the chance to win a range of prizes, including two £500 vouchers drawn from a raffle of all schools entered. Individuals were also offered a £5 discount on any of their purchases over £25.

The proliferation of electronic goods and their accessories in recent times has created the fastest growing source of waste in the world today. Consider, for a moment, how many charging cables, old pairs of headphones or disused phones you may have lying around in drawers and boxes at home. Currys is trying to encourage proper disposal of these kinds of goods, 75% of which are said to be recyclable, through their ongoing program.

One of our parents got involved in the scheme as they kindly donated an item of e-waste and nominated the school for one of the prizes. Thrillingly, Rydal Penrhos was lucky enough to win one of the two £500 vouchers on offer. This has since been put to excellent use to add new equipment that will have an immediate and tangible use for our Prep pupils day-to-day.

After much consultation, the voucher was spent on the following items:

• One combination microwave / oven, to be used on a new Food Tech trolley.
• One double hob, also on the same trolley.
• Two irons to help speed up the making of our crisp packet sleeping bag covers.
• One portable Bluetooth speaker.
• One double toaster for Pre-School and Holiday Club.
• One child-friendly sewing machine, for DT and Art projects.

Prep pupils were ecstatic to hear that Rydal Penrhos had won the prize and have since enjoyed using the new tools as part of their exciting curriculum lessons and diverse extra-curricular pursuits.

A huge thank you to whichever parent it was that took the time and trouble to recycle their old electrical items and nominate us. Thanks also to Business Executive Gulam Gelu at Currys – who helped the school immensely with this project – and Currys at large for holding this promotion in support of a crucial cause.

If you would like to find out more information about recycling your electronic waste, please click here. Given the strongly-felt commitment to eco issues among our children and young people, expect more news of Rydal Penrhos pupils stepping forward in name of the environment very soon!