Explore the Let’s Go Zero map to see where else teachers, students and school communities are taking action to become zero carbon by 2030.
Let’s Go Zero school action:
St Francis Xavier School
Part of
Nicholas Postgate Catholic Academy Trust, England
Since 2014, St Francis Xavier School has embedded care for the environment into the heart of everything they do in their school. Here are some of the many initiatives they are doing:
- Reducing food waste by 20% by raising awareness through measuring food waste at lunch time.
- Has saved approximately £8,000 in energy due to behaviour change from students and staff.
- The Trust has embedded sustainability into their procurement policy which challenges suppliers to ensure they follow sustainable practices.
The teachers and students leading the action:
“There is some great eco work happening across our Trust schools and we are learning from each other. With 3,700 children and 385 staff across 17 schools, we know that we can make a significant impact. As individuals we can only do so much, but together we can make a big difference.”
Margaret Land
Old Sustainability Lead
“I want to see our school run on solar power in the time I’m yma., ac stop our buses polluting the air that we breathe. My hope is that our school can become carbon zero.”
Amelie Nichols
Student and Eco Team Member
What are they doing in their school?
St Francis Xavier started measuring their food waste in January 2018. By 2020, from the data they collected, they achieved a 20% reduction in waste and saved £500 in food waste disposal.
The school yn rhanddeiliaid working on creating a ‘green corridor’ for nature around the boundary of the school’s sports field ac have worked with their grounds maintenance team to leave areas for wildlife. They have installed bird feeders, hedgehog boxes, and two wildlife cameras are in place to monitor the area.
The students and staff have conducted energy audits and taken part in behaviour change initiatives. This has led to a 64,000-kwh saving when compared to previous years, saving approximately £8,000.
In 2016, the school installed 48 solar panels which creates 11,000 kwh of energy for the school to use
The Trust has embedded sustainability into their procurement policy which challenges suppliers to ensure they follow sustainable practices. Which may mean not always selecting the cheapest supplier, however, shows their commitment to becoming zero carbon.
By building strong partnerships with their catering suppliers, who understood the problem, they now receive straw free drink cartons – reducing their plastic waste.
Cymraeg 
English (UK)