Making a difference in Westminster by Miss Dockerill
On Wednesday 15th June, Miss Dockerill had the fantastic opportunity to take some of our Year Five boys and girls to the Greenpeace Youth Empowerment Day. They spent the morning sharing their data on our plastic use and creating a visual representation of what this looked like. As we have been studying the ocean, they were particularly shocked by the effects this is having on marine life and wanted to get this message across! Did you know that 60% of rubbish found in the River Thames is single use plastic? The children then had a chance to come up with some questions and ideas to share with their MP, Theresa May. They decided they would like -
- More water fountains and recycling bins around town
- More financial support for solar panels
- A shared community fridge in Maidenhead, which local businesses, restaurants and schools could donate leftover food to and members of the public could use for free so long as they brought their own packaging to take it home in.
The whole entire journey was once in a lifetime! Faye K, G5
We then walked to The House of Commons, where the children were amazed by the architecture and all the statues inside. Once there, we met with Maidenhead MP, Theresa May and had an opportunity to share our ideas and ask questions. Mrs May said she would share our ideas in a letter to the council asking them what they are doing currently about the plastic problem. We then met with Zarah Sultana MP who was incredibly inspiring, before meeting with Ed Miliband, Shadow Secretary of State for Climate Change. The children were absolutely fantastic asking such thought-provoking questions and sharing their amazing ideas taking the opportunity to be heard and make a difference.
As always, the children were fantastic ambassadors for Claires Court Juniors and it was an experience to remember for a lifetime.
It was a great learning opportunity for us and we hope we can help with the problem at hand. The effect of rubbish needs to be stopped and we can see that more clearly now. Sammy W, 5V
