[Celebrating Ralph Allen’s progress in reducing carbon and becoming more sustainable. (L-R) Paula Malone, Councillor Sarah Warren, Wera Hobhouse MP, Green Team, Anna Wallace.]
You know you are doing it right when the ‘big guns’ want to see what you have been up to.
Bath MP Wera Hobhouse and Councillor Sarah Warren, Cabinet Member for Sustainable B&NES, visited Ralph Allen School to meet the ambitious student-led Green Team leading the way in reducing the school’s emissions and improving sustainability.
Since early 2025, Ralph Allen School has been working with Let’s Go Zero – the UK’s leading schools climate initiative, helping schools become healthier, happier and more resilient through the decarbonisation of the school estate. Across the country, Let’s Go Zero is bringing support, guidance, and opportunities to over 9,000 schools – helping them to reduce carbon emissions, save money and deliver benefits to pupils and the wider community.
During the visit, Mrs Hobhouse and Councillor Warren met with Let’s Go Zero Climate Action Advisor Paula Malone, the school’s Sustainability Lead Anna Wallace, and Interim Headteacher Seb Witts before being given a tour by students on the school’s Green Team.
The Green Team, which is formed by Sixth Form students and leads on a number of green initiatives, showed Mrs Hobhouse and Councillor Warren around its key projects, such as the Wellness Garden – a peaceful green outdoor space where students can relax and reconnect with nature. Increased bike storage, recycling bins, and a vegetable garden home to tomatoes, rhubarb and much more were other stops on the tour. Students are currently competing to recycle batteries, and Mrs Hobhouse and Councillor Warren saw a larger-than-life model, where old batteries can be deposited. With students going home and asking friends and family for old batteries, such schemes show the vital role schools play in promoting sustainability within communities.
Mrs Hobhouse and Councillor Warren also heard how students are encouraging classmates and teachers to turn off lights, screens and computers to reduce energy usage and save money. Fundraising by the Green Team paid for important signage labelling different recycling and waste bins, as well as reminding everyone to switch off lights.
With education being a significant contributor to public sector building emissions, and schools nationally spending an estimated £1.8 billion on energy per year, zero-carbon, climate-resilient schools are crucial to the UK meeting its climate targets.
Shockingly, much of the country’s educational establishments are not fit for purpose in a changing climate, and it is estimated that eight school days per year could be lost annually due to extreme weather in 2050. Prioritising schools’ climate preparedness and resilience is therefore essential in guaranteeing the future of healthy and supportive learning environments.
Seb Witts, Interim Headteacher, said:
“Since partnering with Let’s Go Zero, we have achieved some incredible results on our journey to net zero. We have been able to develop links with other organisations, draw in vital funding and have seen real savings in our energy budget. We are excited to see what we can do together in the future!”
Paula Malone, Let’s Go Zero Climate Action Advisor, said:
“It was fantastic to have Wera Hobhouse and Councillor Sarah Warren come to Ralph Allen to see the great sustainability work taking place across the school. From wellness gardens to heat pumps, the staff and students have a real passion for the environment and reducing emissions. It’s been a pleasure to support this work and see their progress.”
Lulu, a member of the Green Team, said:
“We are trying to use any space we have, no matter the size, to make a difference. Our vegetable garden was once an unused area – but we’re now using this small space to grow food.”
Councillor Sarah Warren, Cabinet Member for Sustainable B&NES, said:
“It was great to meet the Green Team and hear about their exciting initiatives. B&NES Council are working hard to decarbonise school travel by making it safe to walk, scoot and cycle. Scholars’ Way will soon make it safer to walk and cycle to Ralph Allen School, and connect educational establishments with communities across the south of the city.”
Wera Hobhouse, Liberal Democrat MP for Bath, commented:
“I was delighted to meet young people taking a leading role in reducing their school’s carbon emissions, improving biodiversity, and promoting active travel and public transport options.
“Climate change threatens our health, safety and security – but Ralph Allen is demonstrating that schools can be pivotal in leading change in our communities and contributing to climate resilience.
“Young people are our future – and it is encouraging to see them take direct action to make their environment a healthier place to be.”
