‘Love your caretaker’ – the key to a greener school

CABE is calling for primary and secondary schools across the country to ‘love your caretaker’.

The call is being made at the launch of Green Day 2010, Britain’s biggest education initiative helping teachers and pupils understand and tackle climate change. The event teaches environmental issues through the curriculum and inspires schools to make their buildings and the grounds sustainable. A record 1,000 schools in England are taking part this year.

Caretakers don’t often get much credit or attention in a school. But they are crucial when it comes to tackling climate change. It’s the caretaker who has responsibility for climate actions like creating an allotment, choosing the most eco hand-dryers or installing bike racks.  And who else is going to label light switches, and power down the school at the end of the day? 

So CABE wants every school in Britain to ‘love their caretaker’.  This could start with headteachers offering them a chance to get some training on sustainability and a crash course in architecture, so they appreciate how to adapt the building. And then give them some power and responsibility to reduce the use of water, gas and electricity.  

Barbara-Anne Murray is a teacher at the Henry Moore Primary School in Harlow, Essex, one of the schools taking part in Green Day. She said: ‘To be honest, I don't think caretakers usually get much of a say in how a school is managed. They often just get told what needs fixing. But now we really need them playing a major role in making our schools sustainable.’

Alan Giddings is a caretaker at the school. He said: ‘It’s my job to manage the day to day running of the school site and I have to keep a close eye on the amount of energy used. I think the children enjoy learning the nuts and bolts about how the school works and saving energy.’

Matt Bell, director of education at CABE, said: ‘We need teachers with the confidence to teach about sustainability. Pupils who understand how it relates to the buildings all around them. And a caretaker who can make it happen on the ground.’

This is the third year of the Green Day initiative and the number of schools has more than doubled from last year.

Notes to editors

• More on Green Day is here: http://www.cabe.org.uk/education/green-day
• For more information on Green Day or to request images or an interview please contact Jane Barraclough on 020 7070 6771 or jbarraclough@cabe.org.uk
• A typical Green Day could see the day begin with an assembly explaining what Green day is and why the school is taking part. In maths they might calculate the class’s carbon footprint; in English they could create an advert to persuade people to change their behavior; in science they could race solar cars; and in art they could depict climate change using an abstract picture.   
• Schools in England generate roughly the same amount of greenhouse gas emissions as all the energy and transport of Birmingham and Manchester put together. Changing this is now the law.
• CABE is the government’s advisor on architecture, urban design and public space. As a public body, we encourage policymakers to create places that work for people. We help local planners apply national design policy and offer expert advice to developers and architects. We show public sector clients how to commission buildings that meet the needs of their users. And we seek to inspire the public to demand more from their buildings and spaces. Advising, influencing and inspiring, we work to create well-designed, welcoming places. www.cabe.org.uk