Managing this concern is important. If left unaddressed children may feel helpless, leaving them worried about the fate of the planet.

Schools need to share enough information about environmental issues with pupils so they can understand the extent of the situation without catastrophising it. And, as with any problem, teachers should work to inspire pupils to invent new solutions to environmental challenges, reconnecting them with thoughts of a more positive future.

As an independent school, you can support children in their fight for a more sustainable planet by establishing an environmental committee and adopting a circular economy within the school.

By helping students implement innovative solutions to unsustainable school practices, you can empower them to lead the way in sustainable development, giving them more control over their future.

Committed to sustainability, at Zip Water we can help your school to become more circular. Our range of industry leading mains-fed filtered drinking water solutions provide users a choice of pure-tasting boiling, chilled or sparkling water at the touch of a button.

The delivery of great tasting water on tap not only encourages users to drink more but eradicates the need for unsustainable single-use plastic bottled water. Instead, children are encouraged to refill their own reusable bottles with highly-filtered, pure-tasting water – boosting hydration and wellbeing.

Schools need to share enough information about environmental issues with pupils so they can understand the extent of the situation without catastrophising it

Ideal for installation in kitchens or staff break out areas, our market-leading HydroTap range utilises only the most energy-efficient technology, with features such as a lux sensor and programmable timer helping to conserve energy during periods of low or non-usage.

Boiling models also feature Power-Pulse technology to allow the system to regulate its power during periods of heating – meaning it can save energy while maintaining the tightest possible temperature control.

To reduce water wastage, special features such as a low energy air-cooled refrigeration system with inbuilt cross-ventilation help the HydroTap to eliminate the need for water in the cooling process. There is also a timed dispense function, factory set to stop water flow after 15 seconds.

At Zip, we know that safety is a priority in schools, which is why our HydroTap range delivers a smooth stream of water instead of a mix of steam and water that splashes and spits.

Designed to be completely safe and easy to use, our HydroTap range is fitted with unique boiling water safety locks and cool touch technology, ensuring suitability for all environments. For bigger areas such as canteens or gyms, we offer our responsible drinking water solution, the HydroChill.

Models in the range, such as the HydroChill HC20 and HydroChill HC50, can provide up to 200 750ml bottles of pure-tasting filtered chilled, sparkling or ambient water an hour – and with floor standing, counter-top or under-counter dispensers to choose from, the range ensures there’s an option for every space.

At Zip we can provide tailored solutions to meet all requirements and budgets with a wide range of products and services to offer. Selected models can also help comply with equality requirements, with features such as accessibility levers and braille covers, as well as infection control, thanks to UV Out antibacterial filtration.

To discover more about sustainability and wellbeing in education, watch our 45-minute webinar, targeted at helping schools eliminate single-use plastic from campuses.

Our expert panellists – from Kids Against Plastic and the Green Schools Project – will teach you how to inspire, engage and educate others, helping you adopt a more sustainable approach to plastic in your facility for good.

Turn the tide on plastic. Watch the webinar at universitybusiness.co.uk/webinar-zipwater/

The post How Zip Water can help schools become more sustainable appeared first on Independent Education Today.

Eleven thousand 13-19-year-olds participated in the Cambridge Global Perspectives Survey, with 26% ranking the need to tackle the changing climate above pollution, poverty and other concerns.

Results were even more pronounced in the UK, where 45% rated it as the most pressing matter, ahead of poverty and economic equality (12%) and pollution (11%).

“With the impacts of climate change and poverty dominating headlines, global issues have never felt more local,” said Peter Monteath, regional director Europe at Cambridge International.

“Students are aware of the impact these could have on their futures and are active in raising awareness of them,” added Monteath, “so it makes sense that they want to learn about this issue in the classroom, as well as the chance to debate with other students.”

Twenty-seven per cent of UK respondents said they had not been given the chance to study global issues in school, despite 99% saying it was important that they should do so.

When it comes to trusted sources of information, charities focused on a specific area ranked highest for 31% of students, ahead of the media and websites (17%) and social media (12%).

Teachers were rated as the most dependable information source by only 6%.

With the impacts of climate change and poverty dominating headlines, global issues have never felt more local

A significant majority – 94% – of UK students claim to be trying to raise awareness around issues facing the world, via methods including:

• Making changes to lifestyle (61%)
• Sharing knowledge with family and friends (71%)
• Buying products raising funds to help tackle the issues (37%)
• Giving money to charities and other dedicated organisations (35%)

The survey was conducted ahead of Cambridge Global Perspectives Week, which ran from 1-7 March.

You may also like: Today’s teens to define the world of 2030 and beyond

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One of the biggest threats to our planet, single-use plastics take up to 1,000 years to decompose, polluting our oceans and filling landfills. Over 700 species – such as seabirds and sea turtles – are at threat of extinction due to our destructive plastic addition.

If each person, school and business worked on reducing their plastic usage, the detrimental impact could be reduced. But we need to act now.

As part of a nationwide effort to combat plastic pollution, schools are being urged to eliminate single-use plastic by 2022, instead using sustainable alternatives for plastic bottles, straws and food packaging.

At Zip Water, we want to help you meet the daily needs of pupils while reducing the overall environmental impact. Creator of the world’s most advanced drinking water systems, our sustainable, mains-fed filtered drinking water solutions are ideal for schools and other educational facilities that want to curb their plastic usage while becoming more energy efficient.

The delivery of great-tasting water on tap not only encourages users to drink more but discourages them from buying unsustainable single-use plastic water bottles, protecting the planet.

Education can change the world

If there’s anything we’ve learnt from the past year, it’s that schoolchildren care about reducing their plastic usage and improving the environment. School strikes led by Greta Thunberg saw an estimated seven million children and young people demanding government action on climate change.

They want to grow up in a world that’s doing everything it can to protect their future, with many children developing eco-anxiety from fears we’re not acting quickly enough.

As an independent school, you have the unique opportunity to increase your students’ knowledge and understanding to protect the environment for the future. By rethinking your curriculum, sustainability goals and facilities, pupils can build upon their environmental awareness, not only having a positive impact on the whole school community, but also on general feelings of wellbeing.

As an independent school, you have the unique opportunity to increase your students’ knowledge and understanding to protect the environment for the future

Act now

Teaching students about the environment is of paramount importance – and implementing sustainable policies in your school is even more so. By offering pupils a chance to be environmentally responsible at school, you can empower them, giving them the confidence to implement sustainable practices in the wider environment.

An easy way to start is by getting pupils involved in a discussion about single-use plastics. Find out what they think the best way to start removing them from your school is and help them propose strategies to get there. Make it easy for pupils to be more sustainable – if there are enough mains-fed filtered drinking water dispensers around the building they will choose to refill a bottle rather than purchase a plastic alternative, for example.

With a range of products tailored for the education sector, here at Zip Water we have something for all requirements, with floor-standing, countertop and under-counter dispensers to choose from.

When it comes to ensuring safety, our HydroTap range has it covered. Featuring world-leading filtration – 25 times better than a standard water filter jug – our systems remove not only dirt, microplastics and other contaminants from the water that other systems may not remove, but also up to 97% of chlorine and 99.9% of microbiological cysts, if present.

What’s more, selected models in our HydroChill range feature UV Out sterilisation to destroy 99.99% of toxic microbes, helping to prevent the growth of bacteria at the dispensing point where water bottles come into contact with the tap.

Spend your remaining budget on making a difference. At Zip, we can tailor solutions to suit all requirements, helping you to go plastic water bottle-free.

Call 01362 852 247 or visit specify.zipwater.co.uk/education to discuss your competitive and bespoke package before 31 March 2020.

The post Why sustainability starts in schools appeared first on Independent Education Today.

“Over the past two years we have seen a huge increase in the number of schools joining or re-engaging with our Eco-Schools programme, bringing the total number in England to 20,000,” says Lee Wray-Davies, who manages the country’s Eco-Schools network on behalf of its parent organisation, Keep Britain Tidy. 

Schools are offered free resources and advice to run eco-friendly activities with the aim of qualifying for an Eco-Schools Green Flag award that recognises the difference they have made to the environment.

“The Eco-Schools programme is pupil-led, involving hands-on learning that gets the whole school and the wider community involved in exciting environmental projects,” says Wray-Davies. “Not only does this raise awareness and improve the school environment, but it can create financial savings for schools as well.”

Eco-activities

St Mary’s School in Colchester is one of nine Ambassador Eco-Schools in the UK and shares its eco-ideas with other schools and organisations across the country. There is such a commitment to being environmentally friendly that a green activity happens at St Mary’s every school day.

“Whether they’re emptying the recycling bins and packaging up the paper or even pens and bras that we collect to be used again, planting their own vegetables in the garden, making sure that all the lights are off in classrooms that are not being used, or surveying our local area to check that the flora and fauna is thriving, our students are thinking about their environment and looking after it all the time,” says St Mary’s geography teacher Sarah Wilding, last year’s Eco-Schools Co-ordinator of the Year.

“From kindergarten to year 11, students at St Mary’s come up with their own solutions to the environmental problems we face both in school and beyond – they know that no one is too young to have a positive impact.”

‘Project Zero’ is a pupil-led, whole-school strategic initiative that has been brought in at London’s South Hampstead High School (SHHS) to improve the school’s environmental credentials in time for its 150th anniversary in 2026. The project aims to significantly reduce the carbon footprint and contribution to landfill the school generates. 

The 21st century is a time of unique opportunities and challenges; we have a critical role to play in preparing our students to help create a better future

So far, the student Eco Committee (led by UN-accredited climate change teacher Alex Wrigglesworth) has set up recycling points for crisp packets and batteries, and persuaded the head to commit to carbon off-setting flights on international school trips. They have also lobbied successfully for a meat-free school lunch every week.  

SHHS’s headmistress, Vicky Bingham, is not afraid to lead by example – she has vowed to buy no new clothes for 365 days. This has inspired the students (girls, aged four to 18) to make all sorts of environmentally-friendly personal pledges of their own, including coming to school by skateboard, using only sustainable period products and relinquishing single-use plastics and unsustainable palm oil products.

“The 21st century is a time of unique opportunities and challenges; we have a critical role to play in preparing our students to help create a better future,” says Bingham. “We encourage every student to find her voice – and use it.”

This is no empty promise – permission is granted for each SHHS pupil to attend one ‘Fridays for Future’ climate strike per academic year. 

Last year’s annual whole-school 10km walk ended at the Houses of Parliament, where the head girls delivered hundreds of letters from students, written on scraps of recycled paper, urging their MPs to take action with regard to climate change.

Sustainable buildings

There is no doubt that students can make a difference, but so can senior leadership, particularly when it comes to making decisions about the development and operation of the school.

When Marymount School in Surrey needed six new classrooms, the senior leadership team turned to The Stable Company for a sustainable building to make use of a neglected area of the school grounds.

Clad in western red cedar, with energy-conserving features including smart lighting (which dims according to the amount of natural sunlight in the building) and air source heat pumps (which also keep the learning environment fresh), there are benefits for teachers and their classes as well as the environment – and the school’s bank balance. 

“Timber is a carbon-sequestering material that removes and stores greenhouse gas from the atmosphere, which contrasts sharply with the energy-intensive, mineral-based techniques that underpin masonry or steel-frame construction – estimates suggest that the building industry accounts for 40% of global emissions,” says Gareth Barber, founder of The Stable Company. 

“Also, as a general rule, a timber-frame classroom comes in at a cheaper cost than the equivalent constructed with bricks-and-mortar or steel, especially when factoring in long-term running-cost savings.”

Sam Patel, director of school development at Bickley Park School in Kent, was clear that his school’s new nursery building should come with a strong set of eco-credentials. 

“Environmental friendliness is an increasingly important factor for schools when choosing a building,” says Mark Brown of TG Escapes, which designed and constructed a timber eco-nursery for Bickley Park, with a sedum roof, complete with sun pipes to bring natural light into the classroom from above and solar panels to generate energy.

Brown continues: “Modular off-site construction uses less energy and time than traditional builds and the lightweight system is less harmful to the surrounding environment. These buildings can look great and really save energy.”

It’s not just classrooms that TG Escapes has provided for schools – studios, chapels, canteens, sports pavilions, offices, training centres, sports halls and outdoor learning centres also lend themselves well to eco-friendly construction. 

Conserving resources 

But even school buildings that are not new can be run with energy efficiency and the environment in mind. Over the last 12 years, eco-initiatives at St Mary’s have not only changed attitudes but they have also had an impact on the school’s day-to-day running costs. 

“We always consider the environmentally sound option when carrying out refurbishment work at school,” says Wilding. 

“We have seen a gradual decline in energy consumption since installing radiators with thermostatic controls and photovoltaic solar panels for water heating and we are piloting sensor lighting in high-traffic areas. 

“Water-saving devices in the toilet cisterns have reduced our water consumption and we are investigating the feasibility of installing a rainwater harvesting system. This all makes a difference to the planet and to our finances.”

With all those corridors, cleaning is another ongoing cost to schools and to the planet, but there are ways to reduce the use of natural resources and to make sure that any agents are not harmful to the environment. 

School contract cleaning company Nviro has a culture of ‘cleaning with a conscience’ – on schools’ hard floors, its operatives use i-mops, which use only nine litres of water, compared to the 40 litres used when cleaning with a mop and bucket over the same floor area, and are much faster.

Lunchtime brings another opportunity to help save the planet. Just as the wider catering industry has been forced to clean up its act after coming under fire from the public, school dinners have been the subject of scrutiny from students. 

In common with SHHS, many schools have bowed to pressure from pupils to introduce a meat-free meal on a regular basis to reduce the impact on the environment of the rearing of animals for food. 

There is a growing commitment among school catering managers to source ingredients more locally and to consider the sustainability of Friday’s fish in particular.

We have nominated eco-warriors across the school who hold us to account

Thomas’s London Day Schools, working in partnership with Pelican Procurement Services, has recently started to make its own smoothies to cut down on non-reusable packaging. 

“We were serving 2,500 smoothies in cartons with straws every week as a pudding option across our four preparatory schools,” admits Mark Newman, Thomas’s general catering manager. 

“Instead, we decided to make our own smoothies, which has reduced packaging as well as our food waste – we use the fruit not used at the breakfast service. Then there’s yogurt, which used to be served in individual cartons and is now bought in five-gallon containers and decanted into bowls.”

Thomas’s has also taken the decision to use containers made from recycled or compostable materials (such as Vegware) and, like many other schools, has asked parents to send their children to school with reusable water bottles. 

“Pressure for change comes from several quarters,” says Newman, “including the pupils themselves. We have nominated eco-warriors across the school who hold us to account.”

In this time of eco-anxiety, encouraging students to throw themselves into activities that have a clear benefit to the planet and also to their school is something many school leaders are happy to embrace.

Pass on a greener world 

Jeremy Williams, environmental author and activist, highlights the opportunities for schools to model a sustainable future

Britain has a target to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050. This will involve every institution in the country, and schools can start early and lead the way. In fact, many of their students will expect no less.

Inspired by Greta Thunberg and the school strike movement, young people are energised around climate change. It is their future at stake, and they are looking to adults to take responsibility. This can be a challenge, but we want our young people to be passionate about making the world a better place – that’s the kind of active citizenship the 21st century needs. 

Schools can nurture and direct this interest and collaborate with young people to improve the school. Take part in Eco-Schools and set a target to get that Green Flag accreditation. Plant trees. Investigate solar power, solar hot water and green roofs. Ensure all new buildings and renovations are the highest level of energy efficiency. Improve bike storage facilities and offer Bikeability courses. Take part in Walk to School Week. Work with young people to shape a greener school and a more sustainable future.

This feature is sponsored by Green Modular.

The post How green is your school? appeared first on Independent Education Today.

The free competition contributes towards Eco-Schools accreditation under the global citizenship topic and Jane Goodall’s Roots & Shoots Awards, while also linking to the KS2 and KS3 geography curriculum. It also covers UN Sustainability Goal 15: life on land.

Pupils have been asked to illustrate the story of Ekari, an orphaned elephant in Myanmar, who was rescued by the Worldwide Veterinary Service (WVS) after being snared by poachers.

The winning entry will be professionally illustrated and published in WVS’ Young Vets Club magazine. A framed copy of the illustration will be sent to the winning child and school.

This will help them better understand the responsibility we have towards the animals on our planet, so they can raise awareness in their communities

The competition was created by WVS’ international education manager, Nicky Cook, who said: “I am thrilled about the launch of this competition which gives pupils all over the country the opportunity to learn about a massively important global animal welfare issue.

“It is a great project for pupils in Eco-School groups to lead on. They can look deeper into the problems of animal trafficking and logging. This will help them better understand the responsibility we have towards the animals on our planet, so they can raise awareness in their communities.”

Amy Marshall, head of science at Walhampton School, an independent school in Hampshire, said the school has signed up: “It’s a great way to be teaching our students about the massive issues facing animals worldwide and they’re really excited to show off their creativity.”

WVS is also giving away 250 free memberships to its Young Vets Club. The first 50 schools to submit entries can select five students to receive the offer, with all other entrants receiving 30% off their first years’ membership.

Download the competition resource pack. All entries must be returned to the charity by Friday 27 March.

Has your school signed up? Let us know your thoughts on the competition by emailing jo.golding@wildfirecomms.co.uk

The post Animal welfare competition for schools now open appeared first on Independent Education Today.

Zhania Murzalina, 17, who attends Haileybury Astana, received the Royal Economic Society’s Young Economist of the Year essay award.

Her 1,500-word submission was entitled ‘Carbon tax is not enough to tackle climate change – on the contrary, we have to invest in new technologies’.

She was one of six first-prize winners from a worldwide field of 1,300, with judges commending her “highly analytical and focused” argument.

In the essay, I proposed to consider the problem of global warming from different angles

“In the essay, I proposed to consider the problem of global warming from different angles,” said Zhania.

“I decided to question the assertion that only carbon dioxide contributes to climate change. Instead, I suggested that methane, as another gas contributing to the greenhouse effect, leads to a problem.

“While everyone is focusing on CO2 production, one should look at the extent to which methane is to blame for the problem and reduce the emission of both gases.

“Therefore, it is possible and necessary to introduce a tax on carbon dioxide, but it is also necessary to invest in the development of technologies for the processing of methane and CO2.”

Zhania was awarded a scholarship to study at Haileybury Astana.

The post Haileybury student wins prestigious Royal Economic Society prize appeared first on Independent Education Today.

The 2019 parliamentary report on the fashion industry highlighted widespread abuses of both environmental and workers’ protection, not just in distant countries but in sweatshops in Leicester and across the UK. Manufacturing close to home is no guarantee of workers’ welfare and making the odd item from Chinese-sourced ‘recycled polyester’ does little to reduce the overall environmental impact of production.

Schoolblazer believes that school uniform is inherently greener: our average garment is worn over 400 times, with a clear ‘circular economy’ in secondhand. Our overriding principle is durability = sustainability. We cannot shop our way to a greener planet; consuming anything has costs and the less ‘wear’ an item offers, the more it needs to be replaced.

Our average garment is worn over 400 times, with a clear ‘circular economy’ in secondhand

We have set ourselves a series of challenging environmental targets:

1. Carbon neutrality

Schoolblazer is now a zero-carbon company. We’ve analysed our operational carbon footprint in detail and reduced our emissions where we can. Where we’ve been unable to eliminate our energy use, we have offset the carbon created through our partnership with carbon footprint.

2. Clean wastewater

We have put measures in place to ensure that all of our suppliers and mills have wastewater treatment plants that meet the highest environmental standards.

3. Removing single-use plastics

We have an ambitious plan to ‘ship naked’, which we’ll be trialling over summer 2020. However, the overwhelming majority protect our garments as they pass through our supply chain from manufacturer to our customers, so we need to ensure less than 2% of our garments are damaged in transit to avoid neutralising the benefits gained from going plastic-free. If these tests are successful, our plan is to roll-out our ‘ship naked’ system to many more garments in 2021.

4. Recycled polyester

Where possible, we are working to replace the polyester fibre in our garments with recycled polyester, with a plan for 25% of our polyester to be from recycled sources by 2022.

5. Responsible cotton

Cotton tends to be grown in areas of the world with water shortages and poor labour standards. We are a member of the Better Cotton Initiative (BCI), which promotes sustainable cotton growth, teaching farmers how to manage their land and water use sustainably. We have a drive to use BCI cotton in our garments where we can, with a target of 50% BCI cotton by the end of 2022.

Human rights for all workers

Schoolblazer also has a serious commitment to ethical trading. We believe that free and fair trade is an important way to spread wealth around the world and know that the global textile trade is a major engine to lift people out of poverty. As responsible global citizens, we also know that poor working practices are no respecters of borders or laws, as recent scandals involving slave conditions in some of Leicester’s textile factories show. The solution is to adopt consistent standards across our supply base and ensure that these are adhered to.

We are foundation members of The Ethical Trading Initiative, an organisation of retailers, NGOs and unions dedicated to driving the highest ethical standards, with a focus on the following:

● Freely chosen employment

● Freedom of association

● Safe and hygienic workplaces

● No child labour

● Living wages

● No excessive working hours

● No discrimination

● Regular employment

● No harsh or inhumane treatment

For more information on each of these, visit www.schoolblazer.info/wecare

For more information on our partnership with the ETI, visit www.ethicaltrade.org/blog/new-member-focus-schoolblazer

The post Rising to the environmental challenge with sustainable schoolwear appeared first on Independent Education Today.

Lomond School children, aged eight to nine, used diffusion tubes to tested nitrogen dioxide levels on the Helensburgh campus. The project was undertaken as part of UNICEF’s OutRight campaign, intended to highlight children’s rights.

Pupils carried out their analysis having learned that a third of British children face unsafe levels of air pollution. Their results showed the school’s nitrogen dioxide levels to be in the lowest 25% of the 1,000 participating schools and youth clubs. After submitting their work, the school was visited by two members of UNICEF staff.

Pupils remain focused on enforcing change within the local community

“The visit from UNICEF has equipped [pupils] with campaigning skills and encouraged them to continue efforts to inspire their friends, families and people in the local community to focus on their own environmental impact,” said teacher Joe Grafton.

“While the results of the air pollution tests were low, the pupils remain focused on enforcing change within the local community in a bid to further reduce pollution in Helensburgh and beyond.”

To that end, students made a list of further steps that could be taken, including walking rather than driving, creating more green spaces, and pedestrian-only zones near local schools.

Pupils also took over classes for a day, to teach their peers about the child’s right to a safe and healthy environment, and sent details of their tests and proposals to Roseanna Cunningham, the Scottish Parliament’s cabinet secretary for environment, climate change and land reform.

“Undertaking this project was a fantastic experience for the pupils,” added Grafton.

“They’ve gone on to learn really important lessons about the environment and the impact they have on it, as well as their own rights and the rights of other children.”

You might also like: Headmaster of Brighton College, Richard Cairns, not only has sympathy with students striking over climate change, but is putting their environment-protecting ideas into practice

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Royal Hospital School launched its Grow with Us campaign at an open day on 9 November.

“We are fortunate to live and work in a beautiful part of Suffolk and our pupils are constantly seeking and suggesting ways that will protect both the local ecosystems and global environment,” said headmaster Simon Lockyer.

“They are environmentally conscious and recognise that through their collective individual actions they can make a difference.”

You may also like: Independent school pupils are using their voices to change the devastating effects of single-use plastic on the environment

The move follows claims from scientists that, if a trillion trees were planted in the coming years, the amount of carbon in the atmosphere would be reduced by 25%.

RHS hopes its example will encourage other schools to do something similar; if every school on the planet planted 200 trees a year over the next seven years, it would add more than four billion trees to the total.

Other recent initiatives at the school include: stopping the purchase of single-use plastic bottles in favour of giving each pupil a refillable, stainless steel water bottle; no longer using non-biodegradable items at events; and giving open day attendees a packet of butterfly and bee-friendly seeds.

The post Suffolk school commits to major tree planting initiative appeared first on Independent Education Today.

On the one hand, retailers need to reduce single-use plastics, their carbon footprint and their reliance on non-sustainable materials. On the other, they are under increasing pressure from all sides to reduce their prices to meet the demand for quality garments at bargain-basement prices. Back-to-school has become a flashpoint, with parents opting for basic uniform sets from popular retailers that sell for as little as £3.75.

Great price. But at what cost?

Whereas with, for example, single-use plastics, we are more active consumers, choosing to use a ‘bag for life’ or refusing a bag altogether at checkout, when it comes to ethics, we are prepared to ‘buy’ what manufacturers are telling us about their ethical trade practices, just as long as we don’t have to give up getting what we want. We are unprepared to face the inconvenience of the so-called truths that we are not being told. We want to purchase something that gives us change from a tenner while leaving our consciences intact.

Here are just a few hard facts

Ethical trade abuses continue unchecked in developing countries, with little regulation or accountability

Bangladeshi workers are making uniforms for UK budget retailers that sell for less than the cost of the uniforms they have to buy for their own children. And they can’t afford to buy them.

If you think sourcing your garments in the UK/EU is a safe bet, think again

In Bulgaria, some textile workers do 24-hour shifts for less than €100 per month. The UK has been under the spotlight with the exposing of ‘dark factories’ in Leicester, where the average worker wage is £4.25 per hour.

High fashion doesn’t escape either

A high-profile Made in Italy label has been found to pay sweatshop wages of about 90p per hour.

This has to stop

As the leading uniform supplier to UK independent schools, Schoolblazer is determined to lead by example. To this end, it is the only specialist schoolwear retailer in the UK which is a member of the Ethical Trading Initiative – an alliance of companies, trade unions and NGOs that are promoting respect for workers’ rights around the globe. This includes freely chosen employment and union membership; safe, hygienic working conditions; no child labour; a living wage; reasonable working hours; regular employment; and freedom from discrimination and maltreatment.

While the environment is front and centre in the news and in our hearts and minds (as it should be), it’s critical that we look at the other side of the equation – the one that offers a fuller picture, yet which is being neglected, and to the detriment of both.

“We think it’s vital that we know about where our clothing is sourced, who is making it, and the conditions in which they are working,” says Schoolblazer co-founder, Tim James.

“Our mission is to create uniforms that are made to last, using designs that are classic to avoid the built-in obsolescence adopted by many fashion labels and lines, where styles are changed regularly and discarded easily.

“While taking care of our environment is critical, unless and until people are supported and remunerated well – until they thrive instead of simply eking out an existence – then they suffer, and the environment suffers along with them. Understanding this symbiotic relationship between the two is what is going to effect positive change for both.”

To find out more about Schoolblazer, visit: www.schoolblazer.com

The post The contradiction in the school uniform debate appeared first on Independent Education Today.