Wandsworth Council: Recycling at school

• Council: London Borough of Wandsworth Council (Conservative controlled until May 2022)

• Project name: Recycling for schools

• Location: Wandsworth, London

• Purpose: Along with other London local authorities, Wandsworth was instructed to develop a ‘Reduction and Recycling Plan’. These plans are meant to feed into a London-wide target to cut food waste by 50% per person and reach a 65% rate for recycling. As part of its efforts to reach its recycling and waste targets, the council worked with schools across the borough to help children to learn how to recycle and why it is important.

• Description: The council set up a number of programmes through local schools including:

  • An educational programme to encourage and promote ‘reduce, reuse, and recycle’ both at school and at home. As part of the programme, school children visit a recycling centre to see what happens to their recycling.

  • Recycling at school: a free support package is available to schools (including workshops, assemblies, and waste audits) to raise awareness of the benefits of recycling and how to increase rates of recycling.

  • Other schemes include:

    • Special bins for mixed recycling within schools

    • Containers for recycling batteries

    • Cooking oil collection

• Conservative councillor/ council lead: former Council Director of Environment and Community Services, Cllr Paul Chadwick, and former Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance, Corporate Resources and Climate Sustainability, Cllr Kim Caddy.

• Further links: Council write up, Western Riverside Waste Authority (WRWA) the statutory body for local authorities (Hammersmith, Kensington, Lambeth, and Wandsworth) webpage, and Traid (toolkit for schools for sustainability).