Leverhulme Memorial School on Harris has won top prize in the Eco-Schools Scotland
Awards.
The primary school in Leverburgh was a joint winner for the Climate Action Project of the Year Award alongside Falkirk’s Braes High School in Keep Scotland Beautiful’s annual competition.
Pupils took part in a wide range of activities to achieve their award, including contributing to a global sea temperature study. Learning about the effect microfibres have on the sea and marine life, the pupils researched reusing and recycling clothes and paid a visit to a local charity shop where they created posters to encourage people to reuse and recycle.
They made a video about the effects of microfibres and presented it a local community event.
A letter was also written to local MP Torcuil Crichton to highlight their concerns about microfibres and advocate for filters to be fitted on new washing machines. Mr Crichton then visited the school to learn more about the pupils’ work and how it fits into the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.
Andrea Gabriel, education manager at Keep Scotland Beautiful, said: “Every year our
Eco-Schools Awards allow us to celebrate the very best of the brilliant work pupils
all over the country are achieving in environmental education.
“Once again we were so impressed with every entry and I’d like to say congratulations
to Leverhulme Memorial School for their fantastic effort. We love working with the
thousands of children, young people and educators in schools across Scotland involved
in Eco-Schools and it was so inspiring to see such a broad variety of submissions
this year.”
Mairi Macleod, class teacher at Leverhulme Memorial School, said: "The pupils have loved their journey to becoming an Ocean Friendly school.
“We really enjoyed our cross-curricular activities which gave an insight into marine
habitats and ecosystems, and an in-depth understanding of the problem of microfibers
in our oceans.
"We also had the opportunity to work with many community partners as well as the Marine Conservation Society. The brilliant thing was that the process not only highlighted the issue, it empowered the children to become agents of change! They now know that they have the ability to change not only their own habits, but to drive change in the community and perhaps even the country.”
She added: "We are eagerly anticipating the bill for filters on washing machines
being discussed in Parliament. Sustainable Global Goals 14 and 12 have provided
rich learning opportunities embedded throughout our inter-disciplinary learning.”
Eco-Schools is the largest sustainable schools programme in the world with almost
20 million children, young people and educators engaged worldwide in 73 different
countries. In Scotland almost 900 schools currently fly the Green Flag proudly while
hundreds of others are on their own journey, through our Climate Action Schools framework,
to achieve one.
Leverhulme School wins top Eco-
14 May 2025
