A SCHOOL where a green agenda forms part of all aspects of the curriculum is hoping to become an ambassador for environmentally friendly learning.

Cotsford Junior School, in Horden, near Peterlee, has won a Green Flag award three times in the last five years.

It is now putting together an application to achieve Eco-Schools Ambassador status and has already started working towards it by hosting a forum for 12 other schools in County Durham.

Headteacher Beverley Jones said: “It is a fantastic achievement, not only to be able to approach families in the local community and explain to them what being an eco-school is all about, but to be able to have other schools come and see what we do.

“It is not just about pupils learning about the global dimension of environmental issues, it is about them passing on what they learn through the curriculum to their families.

“The children read the gas, electricity and water meters every week so they have an understanding about conservation and saving energy.

“Our pupils are also learning about growing their food and healthy lifestyles. It does infiltrate all areas of the curriculum.”

The school, which has its own dedicated Eco Team made up of staff and pupils, was also the winner of the Care and Conservation Award in The Northern Echo's inaugural Schools Awards earlier this year.

Everything that forms part of school life is involved in recycling from papers and books, to ink cartridges, packed lunch wrappers and waste from the kitchen.

Children tend an animal hotel in the school’s grounds to make habitats for all kinds of creatures and go on litter picking expeditions around their village.

Student support manager and Eco Team co-ordinator Alison White said: “It makes them better children, because they are more aware of litter picking, they are more aware of recycling and they are teaching other children and their own families about the eco system themselves.

“It is helping them understand the world as a whole, rather than just their own community where they live and they are sharing that knowledge.”

The school has its own gardening club and grows fruit and vegetables, including onions, beetroot, radishes, beans, herbs, potatoes and tomatoes.

Teaching assistant Pauline Evans, who runs the club, said: “They have the skills and knowledge to be able to home to their parents and plant their own vegetables and grow their own vegetables.

“It is the sense of achievement and the enjoyment they get out of it while they are out in the fresh air, instead being stuck in front of a games console.

“You think that some children would be squeamish about slugs, spiders and worms, but they love it and they pick them up and have a look so they get to learn about the wildlife too.

“They take what they produce and go into the kitchen with it so that helps them learn about healthy eating and they get the exercise as well. They love it.”

Pupils have recently taken part in a project to learn about Ghana, which involved a long hike to a cemetery tap to fill up their bottles so they have an idea of how hard it is for children in the African country to get drinking water.

They are now involved in fundraising to build a well for a village in Ghana.

Year six teacher Rachel Manley said: “We have researched Ghana to make sure what we were teaching them was accurate.

“The compassion they have shown and willingness to help people has been overwhelming. They have responded really well. Socially, morally and culturally, that is something we have wanted to hit as a school with the pupils.

“It has also benefitted other aspects of learning because it is something they were passionate about.”

The school is now looking to invest in photovoltaic panels for its roof so it can harness solar power from the sun to generate its own energy.

It is also looking at the possibility of having its own wind turbine and a biomass generator in the future.

Jay Warren, the year six chairman of the Eco Team, said: “Being part of the Eco Team is very enjoyable and we have learned how we can directly and indirectly help the environment.

“We know how important it is to save energy to stop global warming and it is also important to learn to respect what we have got already.”