Litter Less Campaign
The Litter Less Campaign
Running the Litter Less Campaign through the Eco-Schools programme is an opportunity for the whole school to participate in the campaign. Through the Eco-Schools Seven Steps framework, the school and surrounding community engages in actions that prevent, reduce and find solutions to the issue of litter and waste in their local environment.
Eco-Schools that run the Litter Less Campaign monitor the litter and waste produced in their school, and organise Community Action Days that involve the whole school as well as parents, and local stakeholders. Applying for the prestigious Green Flag award is also a fantastic opportunity for schools to highlight their achievements and best practices when it comes to managing their waste in a sustainable manner!
- over the academic year carry out 6 litter picks or 6 waste measurements and tell us what you collected.
- complete a short 2 page final report on your progress.
- Submit your report to your local field officer or upload onto your resource library as evidence for your Green Flag
Follow the steps below to get started!
1. Register with your local field officer by emailing them your registration form!
- Belfast City Council & Antrim & Newtownabbey Borough Council Schools: anna.green@keepnorthernirelandbeautiful.org
- Derry City & Strabane Council, Mid & East Antrim Council & Causeway Coast and Glens Council Schools: gareth.lamrock@keepnorthernirelandbeautiful.org
- Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council & Ards & North Down Council schools: zara.hamilton@keepnorthernirelandbeautiful.org
- Newry, Mourne & Down Council & Armagh City, Banbridge & Craigavon Council schools: ben.ryan@keepnorthernirelandbeautiful.org
- Mid Ulster Council & Fermanagh & Omagh Council schools: peter.mcerlean@keepnorthernrielandbeautiful.org
2. Weigh Your Waste!
Once you’ve registered with your local field officer, the next step is to read the Guidelines for Monitoring Waste in Schools and choose one (1) of the following criteria to measure*, monitor and report on:
- Amount of litter found in the school yard
- Amount of litter and waste collected in the school
- Amount of paper collected in the school or classrooms
- Amount of waste recycled in the school or classrooms.
You will be asked to measure the one (1) criterion your school selected six (6) times during the campaign. The first time you measure will be when you register. This is to ensure that the data can be used for the final impact assessment. To assist schools with this task, we have developed four frameworks (one for each criteria) which carefully explain the process and which can be used as an educational exercise for students as well.
*Remember: Data must be filled in kilogrammes (kg).
3. Teach a Lesson!
Need some inspiration? You can find lesson plans about litter and waste through the Eco-Schools lens below!