Oasis Academy Putney celebrates receiving a silver Green Tree Schools accolade

Eco-conscious youngsters from a local primary school situated in the heart of South London are celebrating again after receiving the next Green Tree Schools accolade from The Woodland Trust.

I like walking to school because it’s better for the environment.

Oasis Academy Putney were recently awarded silver by The Woodland Trust because of their efforts in reducing CO2 emissions, recycling in school, and dressing a tree. A remarkable achievement after they only received bronze a few weeks ago.

Reducing CO2 emissions has been an ongoing focus for pupils, staff and parents at Oasis Academy Putney as they aim to be a ‘walking school’ and encourage families to leave their cars behind and choose alternative active ways of getting to school. One Year 3 pupil said; “I like walking to school because it’s better for the environment.”

Jenny Parris, Principal of Oasis Academy Putney, commented on the achievement, saying; “We are thrilled to have received the silver Woodland Trust Green Tree Schools Award. To earn this award, staff, pupils and parents all came together to ensure we reduce CO2 emissions, and recycle waste in the academy.”

“After achieving our Silver Award we look forward to continuing our ethos at Oasis Academy Putney of loving our local environment as we now go for gold... we hope to achieve our Gold Award by the end of the summer term.”

The South London school has taken advantage of Scooter Training to help give parents confidence in their child’s scooting ability and also ‘Doctor Bike’ to help check the safety of children’s bikes. Each week a child is celebrated for their active travel to school by finding a ‘golden lock’ attached to their sustainable mode of travel.

Rowena Stone, Project Manager & Environmental and Sustainability Lead at Oasis Community Learning, commented on the academy’s achievement saying; “Oasis Academy Putney have carried out fantastic work to win this award. Their pupils have connected with nature in a meaningful way. They have then taken this connection with nature further and educated students on how they can protect nature for now and future generations through recycling and reducing their CO2 emissions.”

“This is something Oasis Community Learning are extremely passionate about and the Environmental Sustainability working group is well underway to ensure we as an organisation are protecting the environment for current and future generations. We are in the process of drafting our Environmental Sustainability strategy and will be announcing our target for when we will be Carbon Neutral.”

Established in 1972, the Woodland Trust now has over 1,000 sites in its care covering over 22,500 hectares.

The Green Tree Schools initiative, which has seen more than 12,000 schools sign up since it was launched in 2008, offers the opportunity to bring the great outdoors, wildlife and green issues into the classroom.

Karen Letten, Schools & Communities Engagement Manager at the Woodlands Trust, added; “The scheme promotes a range of opportunities, each designed to stimulate a child’s imagination and sustain their interest in woods and trees. The achievements of the school are recognised through an awards scheme in which they receive points for taking part in activities. As they reach milestones within the project, they will receive bronze and silver certificates and then an attractive wooden plaque which acknowledges they’ve achieved the environmental accolade of a gold award.”

“I hope Oasis Academy Putney will now consider going for our next accolade, the prestigious gold award.”

The Woodland Trust’s vision is to see a UK rich in native woods and trees for people and wildlife. The charity is dedicated to creating new woodland with help from communities and schools and protecting and restoring ancient woodland for future generations to cherish.