THE planet's future has been on the agenda at a primary school is West Devon, as young children learn how to safeguard the environment and lead sustainable lives. Children from North Tawton Community Primary School have been examining the contents of their dustbin with waste educators from Global Action Plan (GAP), as a part of the Devon County Council Waste Reduction Programme to try and cut the amount of waste they are sending to landfill. The school council and other selected children took part in a waste training day run by environmental charity GAP. Headteacher at North Tawton, Nick D'Agorne, said: 'The programme has a truly "gloves on" approach which enables young people to make connections with the things they use and discard and the impacts this can have on the environment. 'I give my wholehearted support to this initiative, in the hope that it enables the children in our school to lead more environmentally sensitive and sustainable lives.' The county council's executive member for environment, Margaret Rogers, said: 'We are delighted to be supporting GAP so it can continue its highly successful waste initiative. 'By reaching young people in Devon, we are investing in a more sustainable future for our children and the beautiful county they live in.' By using the 3 'Rs' — reduce, recycle and re-use — the students carried out a waste audit and came up with a plan to reduce the amount of rubbish they produce. Last year GAP worked with more than 100 Devon schools to achieve an average waste reduction of 45% per pupil. GAP will continue to support North Tawton Primary School in its efforts to reduce waste by running a series of workshops and will complete a second waste audit later in the year to measure the changes. All schools are eligible to take part in the waste reduction programme free of charge. For more information, call Victoria Thompson on 01392 382968.
