Cutting Waste, Creating Change: North London Schools Go Green
The North London Waste Authority (NLWA) has introduced a pioneering recycling programme across North London to educate primary school children about waste.
The ‘In the Know’ initiative was rolled out in primary schools across the seven North London boroughs (Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Hackney, Haringey, Islington, and Waltham Forest).
Beginning in 2025, some 5,000 North London school children were involved in the 2025/6 programme, with impressive results.
Challenging behaviours
The schools involved took part in a series of initiatives to improve their understanding of recycling and waste.These included in-school assemblies, training on how to reduce food waste, and staff away days.
Working closely with teachers and North London borough officers, the NLWA raised awareness of waste and sustainability education, communications and engagements, and waste and recycling initiatives.
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Accurate auditing
At the start of the year a thorough waste audit of school bins was carried out to establish a baseline. A second, follow-up audit was carried out at the end of the programme to assess impact. An estimated 15,000 individual items of rubbish (NLWA) were sorted by hand and classified, with close to half a tonne of waste also weighed bag by bag.
Small changes: Big impact
Findings showed:
Items correctly placed in rubbish bins increased from 70 to 82%
Items correctly placed in recycling also rose from 77 to 88%
The estimated overall recycling rate across audited schools rose from 39% to 45%
London schools wishing to take part in the programme can apply here.
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For more information contact: info@scarabtrust.org.uk
Images:
school assembly - Image from NLWA (ST ref: 1438)
Betty Layward waste audit - Image from NLWA (ST ref: 1440)
ID 240620-A
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