OKEHAMPTON Primary School will soon be green all over! Last weekend saw 20 keen conservationists out in force to help plant a new native hedge around the school's playing field and environmental area. Five hundred trees were donated by Western Power Distribution (WPD) in partnership with the Silvanus Trust. The WPD project began in 1991 and has spent thousands of pounds each year on trees, shrubs and hedges to help encourage community tree planting. The Silvanus Trust, who operate with schools and communities in Devon and Cornwall, is a registered charity that offers information, education, advice and demonstrations on different aspects of woodland. At the weekend, children and adults helped to plant a mixture of dogrose, guelder rose, hawthorn, spindle, crab apple, hazel, whitebeam, holly and cherry plum which, once mature, will create a natural habitat to support wildlife in the area. The children at Okehampton Primary have also been testing out their green fingers on the new allotment beds and, thanks to Okehampton Rotary Club, they are now able to store their gardening tools in a brand new shed. The new shed was provided and built by members of the Rotary Club as part of the continuing hands- on and financial support they deliver to the school. The Rotarians have made a commitment to help make the school children aware of environmental issues both in Okehampton and around the world. This commitment has been tied into the school's efforts to obtain 'Eco-School' status. The school's Eco-Watch team are currently working on their bronze award and have just completed their first Environmental Audit. The Eco-Watch team are responsible for collecting food waste in food caddies from Key Stage One classes, the staff room and from both playgrounds. With a total of 14 caddies, two large composters are being filled and already producing good quality compost to go on the new allotment beds. Along with the school council, the Eco-Watch team recently visited Heathfield Landfill Site and Brunnell Road Recycling centre at Newton Abbot. The day proved to be an eye opener for both children and staff. School council co-ordinator, Rhonda Willingham, said: 'The day reinforced the children's knowledge of the 3 Rs — reduce, reuse and recycle. 'We were all impressed with the management of waste at the landfill site but could not believe how much waste we are capable of making. 'It has inspired us to continue with our efforts to be less wasteful and recycle more at school.' The green credentials of Okehampton Primary School were further boosted by the news that three members of their Wildlife Watch Group received runners-up prizes for designing a calendar on the subject of climate change. Claire Hariades, from competition organiser Westden, said: 'The standards of entries was very high which made judging extremely difficult! 'All the children who entered obviously understand a great deal about change and are keen to get their message across.'
