Partou Alexandra complete Plastic Free Schools Accreditation

Hi Holly, first of all can you tell us a little about yourself, your role at Partou Alexandra and your inspiration behind this project?

Sure! I first joined the team as Nursery Manager in 2016, bringing a wealth of childcare experience. Holding a degree in Early Childhood Education, I am extremely passionate about creating exciting environments that inspire learning and lots of fun.

As a firm believer in the notion that how we treat nature today will have long lasting impacts for our children, I have always adopted eco-friendly practices in my personal life and feel extremely lucky that my team share an enthusiasm for sustainability.

Over the years, we have developed a strong planet-friendly ethos and this ultimately led us to discover the work of Planet Free Schools who run the accreditation process.

We couldn’t agree more on the importance of creating a better future for children. Please tell us more about the work involved in receiving the accreditation.

We’ve been working towards becoming ‘plastic free’ since 2022, successfully completing objectives that have focused on education around single-use plastic, reducing our use of them, and spreading the message that we feel so strongly about.

Those objectives naturally became part of every day life at our nursery. Children now regularly help us to recycle and, as a team, we have introduced re-usable products wherever possible to reduce reliance on single-use plastics.

Many of our loose parts, curious treasures and pieces of furniture are pre-loved and have been sourced from charity shops or have been generously donated by our community of supporting families.

That’s great! How have the children found this shift to more sustainable practices?

They’ve absolutely loved it and have took such an active interest throughout. We’ve used planet-friendly literature as part of our story times to discuss the reasons why we must take care of our environment and the wider world which has really helped to capture their imagination.

One of the most engaging sessions involved the children gathering single-use plastics that they had used during the week and depositing them in a water tray with sea creatures. They could then appreciate how easily the creatures could become tangled and endangered before working carefully to rescue them.

Another huge favourite has been the creation of our ‘Critter Corner’ where we keep chickens and plant wildflowers each year to encourage the visit of pollinators. Children also grow fruit and vegetables in our outdoor spaces which they later enjoy as part of snack time.

Rumour has it that you have also gained a friend on the way. Can you confirm this is true?

It is! Our final objective was to create a piece of art that would help us to showcase our planet friendly outlook.

The children responded by creating Roger the Recycling Robot who proudly resides in our recycling station, reminding us of all our hard-work and continuing efforts. You could say he’s an extended member of our nursery team!

Congratulations to the team at Partou Alexandra for their amazing work! If you would like to learn more about the nursery and it’s initiatives, please visit their webpage by clicking the button below.