Eco Policy
MISSION STATEMENT
To create a happy, secure and stimulating learning environment in which
all members of the school community can grow in self-esteem and
develop their potential as human beings. We learn by making mistakes.
Document Information
Policy Number
Created by
H Portrey/A Letts
Responsibility
Review Cycle
2 years
Last Review
Next Review
June 2016
Date Ratified by Governors
16th June 2014
Signature - Head
Signature - Chair of Governors
POLICY STATEMENT
Delapre Primary School will ensure that when all products and services are purchased, we will consider
environmental aspects, potential impacts and costs, associated with their life cycle. Our practice of procuring
products and services will endeavor to ensure that they are less harmful to the environment (land, air and
water) and that they are made with less harmful materials when produced, used or consumed. This will
include, where possible; buying locally, buying recycled and recyclable, using less chemicals and reducing
the schools carbon footprint associated with products and services.
GENERAL COMMENT/BACKGROUND
Recycling
Recycling is already well established at Delapre Primary. Our services contract with facilities management
services company Amey (http://www.amey.co.uk/Whatwedo.aspx?source=page)
http://www.amey.co.uk/AmeyinYourRegion/East/NorthamptonSchools.aspx
Many schools in Northamptonshire are tied into this contract via the local authority and the PFI – (private
finance initiative) project. Amey ensures we have recycling bins provided for paper/card, plastics. All
classrooms recycle their food waste through compost bins, which the local council collect and recycle. The
school office organises the recycling of printer cartridges, batteries and clothing. Therefore, any products that
the school purchases, packaging can be recycled efficiently using existing means. Often cardboard boxes,
plastic bubble wrap and other materials are reused in school for art and design materials and storage of
resources. Amey has a sustainability commitment: http://www.amey.co.uk/Sustainability.aspx
“Because we help deliver vital public and regulated services across almost every area of the UK, the work we
do has a huge impact on the communities we serve. We therefore take our role in society very seriously and
always adopt a sustainable approach that creates shareholder value but also looks to support and improve
the communities we work in”.
School Building
The existing building unfortunately does not have many of the modern day energy saving devices seen in
other schools or buildings, as it is very old, built originally as a middle school in 1935. Some adjustments
have been made over time to reduce various types of waste including water, energy (the Eco schools
programme has been very useful and influential here as children have taken control of these aspects), but
the cost to implement serious changes would be significant. During 2014, building work will commence to
extend, adapt and build new parts as the school expands from 2-form entry to 3. The new building
specifications will incorporate these requirements as standard.
Purchasing
Due to the way public services are run and monitored, schools can be ‘tied in’ to various purchasing
contracts, recommended and overseen by local authority and the county council. Delapre primary must
follow some of these contracts too but do make choices where possible to choose environmentally friendly
companies who use sustainable products and methods. Obviously cost is an issue, some companies provide
products made from non-recycled materials but quote lower prices than those that do. Schools are always on
tight budgets generally, but with the recent public service cuts and governments changes, this has become
increasingly tight with almost no ‘wiggle room’ or customer choice. Where possible, the school makes
positive environmentally friendly choices within these limits.
Much of our school’s stationary, resources and smaller furniture items are purchased from ESPO,
(http://www.espo.org/about-us/why-use-us.aspx) public services procurement company which schools are
encouraged/contracted to purchase goods from by the county council/local authority.
http://www.espo.org/services/education-products-services.aspx
Paper
Procurement considerations
1. Purchased paper is based on recycled/recyclable paper where possible and where existing contracts
allow. One company the school buys from is Halcyon. This company is not the best option for
recycling or having an environmental policy but the school aims to be buying their paper elsewhere in
future. For example, using Hewlett Packard: http://www8.hp.com/us/en/hp-information/globalcitizenship/environment/paperpolicy.html
“As part of its commitment to environmental leadership, HP is dedicated to reducing the
environmental impact throughout its supply chain by following a comprehensive policy on buying,
selling and using environmentally preferable paper”.
2. Using a different company will ensure that the procurement of paper used in school is produced
through a process of low energy consumption and emissions
Cleaning Products
Procurement considerations
1. All cleaning supplies are purchased from Innu-science (http://www.innu-science.co.uk/), which do not
use hazardous substances in their products; their tagline is “global leader in nature-powered cleaning
products.” “Innu-science's product range has been developed to comply with global regulator
approvals to the highest levels of efficacy and human & environmental safety”. Therefore, all products
used by cleaning/site staff for classrooms and dining areas are safe for children to come into contact
with.
2. The recommended dosages are adhered to; the cleaning/site staff have a machine that measures
these dosages accurately and safely.
3. All cleaning/site staff have received the appropriate training and have completed a level 1 or 2 NVQ in
Cleaning and Maintenance. There is a colour-coded system for cloths/mops and so on to ensure
cleaning products/equipment are used correctly.
4. Any packaging from cleaning products is reused and recycled via the on-site Amey bins and council
collections. (See above comment on recycling)
5. All products from Innu-science are made in the UK.
Office/staffroom equipment
Procurement considerations
1. Energy/water efficient models are purchased where possible. E.g.: kettle /dishwasher/fridges/
photocopiers. (See notes below for specific makes and models)
2. Photocopiers are purchased from Canon, who adhere to strict legislation regarding environmental
regulation and have a green procurement policy.
http://www.canon.co.uk/About_Us/sustainability/business/
3. Smaller items such as kettles, toasters and microwaves are bought from Tescos. Information about
their commitment to the environment and trading responsibly can be found here:
http://www.tescoplc.com/index.asp?pageid=638 http://www.tescoplc.com/index.asp?pageid=604
4. The staffroom’s hot water boiler was purchased from Lincat catering company
(http://www.lincat.co.uk/products/type/category/water-boilers1) They are currently ‘working on’ their
environmental policy but have this statement: “some if not all of our boiler units are recyclable at the
end of its useful life.”
5. The staffroom’s dishwasher make is Bosch efficiency class and only uses 12litres of water, 11% better
energy usage, runs quietly and has an eco-programme which all staff have been instructed to use.
Bosch state that their “incredible increase in efficiency is achieved through maximizing water efficiency
in the rinse cycles, faster heating-up, targeted water circulation and improved pump performance, so
Active Water dishwashers use less water and less energy with increased performance”. They have a
strong environmental policy around saving water and energy: http://www.boschhome.co.uk/environmentally-friendly-dishwasher.html
6. The school’s fridges/freezers’ make are Beko, the company states that their “environmental vision
provides products with up to 3 star energy rating”. http://www.beko.co.nz/251/Refrigerations
7. Products purchased come with a life-long guarantee generally and if and when they are disposed of,
the school follows the council’s requirements of waste electrical items.
http://www.northampton.gov.uk/info/200084/waste-and-recycling/659/reducing-and-reusing/3
8. Packaging is reused and recycled. (See above comment on recycling)
Lighting
Procurement considerations
1. When school lights are replaced, they are always low energy strip fluorescent LED tube lights. The
new school building will be fitted with low energy bulbs as standard. (See comment above on new
school building)
2. Lighting controls are used in storerooms and store cupboards to further reduce energy consumption.
These work on an automatic timer, which enables the lights to be triggered on by movement and to
switch off when there is no one in the room. Classrooms in the existing building do not have the same
controls as the building is very old and the cost to implement such controls would be significant. In the
new school building this will be standard. (See comment above) Staff and pupils are very aware about
wasting energy due to the eco-schools programme and switch off lights when out the room.
3. At installation stage, ensure system works as intended, in an energy efficient way
4. Strip fluorescent LED tube lights are recycled in a special plastic cylinder via Amey. (See above
general comment recycling)
Transport
Procurement considerations
The school does not own any vehicles.
Furniture
Procurement considerations
1. Furniture items are purchased from the Corporate Furniture Group (http://www.cfg.gov.uk/), which is a
consortium of British suppliers. Their environmental policy states: “Environmental considerations form
a key component of Counties Furniture Group procurement through our OJEU tendering process.
Each bidder for CFG contracts is required to provide their environmental strategy together with
documentation regarding implementation as part of the assessment process. Any successful CFG
manufacturer holds their own information with reference to such policies which are available at their
web sites as listed below”.
 British Thornton ESF Ltd: http://www.british-thornton.co.uk/Sustainability
 Metalliform Holdings Ltd: http://www.metalliform.co.uk/environmental-policy/
 EME Furniture: http://emefurniture.co.uk/about-us/sustainability
2. Smaller furniture items are ordered from ESPO, public services procurement company which schools
are encouraged/contracted to purchase goods from by the county council/local authority. (See above
comment on purchasing)
3. Regarding the new school building being built, the county council is responsible for sourcing and
buying furniture but this will be sourced locally and in line with current arrangements regarding point 1
above.
4. The school does not procure timber.
5. Furniture materials are made partly or totally from recycled materials and/or renewable materials. See
point 1 above.
6. Furniture packaging is separated and recycled or reused. (See recycling comment above)
7. Furniture is repaired by our site supervisors or Amey contractors when necessary. The school uses
items for as long as possible, until they are no longer fit for purpose. They are then recycled via the
Amey contract or council collections. (See above comment on recycling)
Electricity
Procurement considerations
1. Our electricity provider is Laser Energy Buying group, via Kent County Council, sourced by
Northamptonshire County Council. http://www.laserenergy.org.uk/green-energy.aspx Their green
policy states “Laser is committed to the sustainable consumption of energy from secure sources and
we are one of the UK's largest purchasers of renewable energy”. Their website states they are using
renewable energy sources including hydro, wind (on and off-shore, energy from waste and biomass.
2. Current DEC Certificate: 9961-1052-0270-0800-8895
Food and catering services
Procurement considerations
1. Healthy snacks for childrens’ break times are purchased from Morrisons who have a strong policy
around the environment and sustainability. “We are committed to responsibly sourcing our foods and
will always take in to account the impact on the environment before selling a product in our stores. Our
sourcing policies are constantly under review in order to address sustainability issues.”
(http://www.morrisons-corporate.com/CR/)
2. Healthy snacks purchasing reflect seasonal foods such as fruits and vegetables currently in season,
promoted by Morrisons.
3. The school currently has 16 classes of 30 children in each so snacks are bought in bulk. Packaging is
recycled and reused via classroom recycling bins. (See recycling comment above) ‘Bags for life’ are
used for shopping and transporting the food to school, no plastic bags are used.
4. Staff use cutlery and crockery that is constantly washed and reused. The free school lunches supplied
by Amey sometimes come with plastic cutlery included. This is recycled via the plastic recycling bins in
classrooms or sometimes children take it home to use again.
5. School lunches are prepared by Southern Quarter Development Ltd. They have a clear environmental
policy statement. (See attached policy) Their key aims include recycling, minimising waste and
emissions, raising awareness on environmental issues and complying with current environmental
legislation.
6. No paper products are used in school.
7. Every class puts their food waste into compost bins, which are emptied into big brown bins in the
playground for weekly council collection and recycling/composting instead of landfill. Staff who are
responsible for cleaning and preparing food have all attended food handling/hygiene courses.
8. Environmentally friendly cleaning and dishwashing products are used to wash crockery and cups up.
9. For information on the procurement, make and models of kitchen appliances, see the section on
office/staffroom procurement. Many of the companies the school uses have environmental policies
and where possible, energy/water efficient models are purchased.
10. Water comes from Anglia Water. (http://www.anglianwater.co.uk/environment/index.aspx) Children
know not to waste water and several measure are in place. E.g.: washing up cups from snack in the
bowl, not running the tap. Stop leaks/drips, use water butts for watering plants. They are familiar with
Anglia water’s campaign ‘Love every drop’ and the company has delivered educational sessions in
school to raise awareness of water usage, waste, sewage, water treatment
11. Morrison’s procure only locally produced products or UK made. “When the quality, quantity and value
are there we will always source British first. We have consistently sought to work with the British
farming industry to source as much produce as possible from UK farmers and growers. Support for the
British farming industry is of particular importance to us as we are closer to source than any other
retailer.” (http://your.morrisons.com/Help-and-information/Useful-information/More-about-ourcompany-and-policies/)
12. Where Morrison’s supply food from outside of the UK, (e.g.: some fruits) they support Fairtrade
companies. (http://www.morrisons-corporate.com/media-centre/consumer-news/Morrisons-SupportsFairtrade-Fortnight/) Pupils learn about Fairtrade within their humanities curriculum and understand
how what they and their families choose to purchase has an effect globally.
Gardening Services
Procurement considerations
1. The school does not use peat as a soil improver or plant pesticides.
2. Locally collected water in water butts and buckets is used to water plants inside and outside of school
including the wildlife garden.
3. Native plants are purchased from UK garden centres.
4. Ensure appropriate materials are composting: food waste is composted and will eventually be used on
site. Grass cuttings are added to this.
5. Products are usually bought in recycled, compostable, reusable, recyclable or biodegradable
packaging
Textiles
Procurement considerations
1. Unwanted school uniform items are sold on as second hand so are reused wherever possible. As we
have many siblings at the school, clothes are passed down.
2. School uniform is purchased from Price and Buckland who have a strong environmental commitment:
and an ethical trading policy. http://www.price-buckland.co.uk/about-price-buckland/looking-aftertomorrow/
3. Clothes contain organic cotton or other natural fibres
4. No other textiles are purchased on a regular basis. The school has blinds rather than curtains and the
carpets were purchased a long time ago. When they need replacing, this is done through our Amey
contract. (See above comment on purchasing) The new school building will follow current EU
guidelines.