Sustainability at Berkhamsted

A selection of environmental activities and initiatives include: 

• An estate-wide conservation survey, conducted in partnership with the Wildlife Trust. This will be shared with the local community upon its release.

• Prep School Eco Team and after-school Eco Club. 
• Heatherton’s Forest School and Eco Council. 
• Girls, Boys and Sixth: Swiftly Sustainable and Eco Schools Programme Initiative.  
• A coach service and inclusion of electric vans and bikes in school fleet to help reduce carbon emissions. 
• A range of energy efficiency initiatives already in progress or development. 

• A food waste reduction campaign, as well as initiatives to reduce paper and water usage, alongside promotion of the Eco-Schools scheme which aims to teach children personal responsibility in managing waste, as well as promoting sustainable use of resources.  

A key part of Berkhamsted’s social responsibilities include exploring the role that Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, as well as wider education and staff and student wellbeing, play in ensuring that all members of the school community can contribute to and develop sustainability efforts within Berkhamsted School and beyond it. These efforts include: 

• Pupils receiving extensive education around equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI). 
• The establishment of multiple committees and community groups have been established in recent years to ensure that EDI topics are being discussed and progressed.  
• These include SEDIC (Standing Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Committee), an Anti-Racism group, as well as LGBTQ+ community support groups. 

By engaging with and utilising as wide a variety of voices and experiences as possible, a greater range of solutions and innovations can be developed.   

Establishing and developing community partnerships is of high importance at Berkhamsted. This can include working alongside local charities, schools and community groups. Recent examples of this include students working with the Chiltern Chalk Stream Society and Sunnyside Rural Trust, as well as Berkhamsted hosting students and staff from Virtual School Hertfordshire.  

Meanwhile, a full list of charities supported across the 21/22 academic year can be found on page 18 of the Report, alongside the School’s Placement Partners for pupils.  

The Committee’s responsibilities include:  

• Supporting and integrating sustainability practices within all aspects of school life and the school community. 
•  Ensuring key groups such as the Governors, external agencies and key stakeholders are kept informed on this progress.  
• Aiding further developments in sustainability related commitments, policies and strategies.  
• Advising on the development and implementation of cultural change to embed sustainability into all that Berkhamsted does.