Sustainability

We are incredibly proud of our school community’s support and commitment to help us minimise our impact on the environment. We are on our way to becoming Carbon NetZero by 2030 and have worked extremely hard over the past year on many sustainability initiatives. In the summer, we were delighted to have been selected as one of the finalists in the Environmental Achievement category in the Independent School Parent Awards. Our Environment Strategy outlines our commitment to becoming a leading ‘eco-school’ and we are very proud that this has been recognised by our nomination in these prestigious awards.

You can find out more about how NLCS are working towards the goal of becoming Carbon Net-Zero HERE.

TRANSPORT FOR LONDON’S (TFL) STARS AWARD

We a delighted to have achieved the Bronze level award of Transport for London’s (TfL)STARS accreditation scheme. STARS stands for Sustainable Travel: Active, Responsible, Safe and our participation in the scheme contributes toward NLCS’ environment strategy and commitment to achieving net-zero emissions by well-being scheme inspires young Londoners to travel to school sustainably, actively, responsibly and safely by championing walking, scooting and cycling. In addition, STARS supports students’ wellbeing, helps to reduce congestion at the school gates and improves road safety and air quality. Our team of NLCS travel ambassadors in Years 7, 8, and 9 have led a variety of activities and assemblies for students centred around travel to and from the school in a safe and responsible manner, whilst being active and cutting emissions. By taking part in the scheme and working through the levels of qualifications we hope to improve students’ emotional health and wellbeing by contributing to their 60 minutes a day of physical activity and encouraging healthier travel behaviours.

ECO PARTNERSHIP DAY

Year 7 joined with students from Queen Elizabeth’s School (Boys) for a partnership day focused on the broad topic of Ecology and the causes and effects of Climate Change.

Students studied some of the science involved, acquiring new specialist vocabulary and considering how the media communicate these pressing issues. They also learned how to interpret data and examined examples of where statistics are misinterpreted. They also examined persuasive materials through the analysis of various articles and poems. The day cumulated in presentations prompted by the question, ‘What is the climate crisis, and why should you care?’. Each group was assigned a different audience, from politicians to primary schools. The results were uniformly excellent, each delivering its hard-hitting messages with expertise and conviction.

VOICES FOR FUTURE – TACKING CLIMATE CHANGE GLOBALLY

One of our Middle School students was selected as one of four winners of the National Grid’s ‘Voices for a Green Future’ competition and awarded a £5,000 grant for NLCS to put towards climate change and STEM-related activities within the school. Katya’s speech highlighted the importance of education, asking that climate change be taught alongside geography and science curriculums in the UK and even suggested launching an eco-app that would track how green your lifestyle is. Katya’s speech was delivered to world leaders and delegates as part of the COP26 Summit. Watch Katya’s film here.

Students also joined a live talk organised by The New York Times Climate hub and featured Malala Yousafzai, co-founder of the Malala Fund and Climate Justice activist, Vanessa Nakate. The conference discussed how girls’ education can be nurtured in the specific context of climate action and how schools can use the climate challenge as an opportunity for future leadership and women-led innovation.