Eco-board: Sustainable and regenerative projects 2024-5
New Net Zero Strategy
This year saw the launch of our Net Zero Strategy with the parent and staff sustainability group who attended a screening of the film ‘Wilding’ about the re-introduction of native species at the Knepp Estate, West Sussex. Our Net Zero Strategy has been incorporated into the College Development Plan so that we can embed sustainable and regenerative thinking into everything that we do.
Regenerative Design Curriculum really takes off
This year, both Year 7 and 8 students had two timetabled Sustainability lessons per week during which they learnt about Water and Biodiversity and Soil and Waste respectively. This was the first year in which we were able to make use of our designated Sustainability classroom and our purpose built potting shed. This year, we have undertaken more regenerative design projects than ever, using the ethics, principles and frameworks of the Permaculture Association, especially David Holmgren’s principles of natural systems. Our Sustainability Lead, Ellen Crozier, has been studying for a Permaculture Design Certificate at the Hawkwood Estate in Essex with Permaculture Educator Graham Burnett and is implementing what she has learned with our students.
Meanwhile Fran Bauer, our Textiles teacher, has been planting a natural dye garden in the grounds of our new Arts building, Northbank, and has embedded regenerative thinking into her teaching of Textiles students from Years 10-13.
Centring Sustainability and Regenerative Design across the education community
In the Autumn, Ellen presented on our Regenerative Design Curriculum to the Sustainability Leads from the schools and nurseries who form the Dukes family. She was then asked to speak in a panel discussion on Embedding Sustainability in the Curriculum at the Dukes Education Senior Leaders’ Development Day where she proposed that regenerative design principles should take a central place in the education of the future.
RIC hosted the Great British Economics Olympiad final for the International Economics Olympiad on 27th March 2025. David Hodges, our Head of Economics, designed the final Business Case Study task around UN Sustainability Goal 12: ‘Ensure Sustainable Consumption and Production Patterns.’ You can find the final Business Case Study Task here. Ellen’s speech introducing the importance of sustainable and regenerative themes to Economists can be found here.
Creating the Soil Regeneration Zone
Following the presentation to the Principal of their design to regenerate the College’s soils in October, Year 8 students with the help of Joe and the site team, began to develop our Soil Regeneration Zone. Two more compost bays were added and we built a dead hedge when we realised that the woody waste from the College gardens would not break down into compost quickly enough. The dead hedge acts as the boundary to the site and as a habitat for decomposers, insects, birds and mammals.
We worked with Leighton in the school canteen to include a wormery and hot box in our design and have created space for these to be installed by the Autumn. The installation of a blast chiller had already reduced our food waste by one tonne per month. By the time the wormery and hot box are up and running, we hope that all of our food waste will be recycled onsite to improve the quality of our soils.
The design has already hugely reduced the amount of garden waste being transported off site and we hope to develop the design next year to include hot composting so that ‘uncompostable’ garden waste such as ivy and green alkanet roots. We won’t stop until all of our garden and food waste is recycled to improve our soils.
Intelligent tree planting & hedgerow
Following the presentation to the Principal of their design to regenerate the College’s soils in October, intelligent tree planting got underway in the RIC gardens. The main feature was a hedgerow planted at the top of New Court Bank to prevent soil erosion and capture more water in the soil. This design also would create a wildlife corridor and nesting sites for amphibians, birds and mammals. Crab apples, hawthorn berries, hazelnuts and dogrose hips provide a wealth of food in the autumn and winter. The trees were provided by the Woodland Trust whilst Year 7 and 8 students prepared the ground, shifting 8 wheelbarrows of rubble and 2 tons of compost. Year 8 students then planted our trees that will take 3 years or so to mature.
Spring and summer saw us maintain our design, weeding mulching and marking our hedgerow trees. In total, we planted 42 trees this year, including 3 mature silver birch, in our efforts to improve soil and habitat as well as provide shade, a key ingredient of climate resilient sites. This is truly a legacy for future generations of RIC staff and students.
Horse Chestnut tree care plan
Year 8 harvested our apples and pears this September for sharing with our families and the canteen, who made some chutney. This got us thinking about how we care for our trees and during the Autumn, each Year 8 student adopted a tree, identifying its species and researching what it provides for our ecosystem and how to care for it. Owen noticed that the Horse Chestnut tree was not producing conkers and its leaves were yellowing and seemed to be falling early. We decided to watch and wait as it was hard to tell if this was just a low conker year.
As soon as February rolled around, Owen was out in the garden with eagle-eyed Daisy and they noticed a red substance leaking out of ‘wounds’ in the tree’s bark. They quickly identified the tree as suffering from Bleeding Canker disease. We contacted our arboreal expert, Dave Bushell, who confirmed the diagnosis and spoke to the class about the causes of the disease. A care plan was created involving pollarding the tree, mulching with woodchip and placing biochar cores in the ground for nutrition which should allow it to survive for the medium term. Meanwhile, Year 8 decided to tackle the root cause of the problem: soil compaction from high foot traffic on the site with a design of boardwalks which will be put to the Principal for his consideration next academic year.
Planting for Biodiversity
Meanwhile, Year 7, whose focus was Water and Biodiversity, felt it was important to increase the variety of native plants in the College gardens that would provide all-year-round nectar for pollinators. Following their survey, Year 7 noticed there was little flowering in Autumn which meant fewer insects and fewer birds who relied on the insects for food.
So Year 7 spent the Autumn planting more Spring bulbs and adopted the pond and stream, allowing the site team a break from strimming the edge. More unmown areas enabled green alkanet to flower from April to June, attracting pollinators, and more nettles to grow providing a bumper year for butterflies. We planted poppy and Bird’s Foot Trefoil seeds in the spring in our new potting shed, ready for planting our next Autumn. And in July, we planted lavender, rosemary, roses and snap dragons to make up for the end of the green alkanet season, allowing our insect population to continue to thrive. All this was captured by the nifty camerawork of gardener Joe Ross who was able to add a vast array of insect species to our annual biodiversity audit.
Feed the birds
Having improved habitat for our insect friends, Year 7 realised that our feathered friends would need a little extra help over the winter months. We made bird feeders in December from reused plastic water bottles and chose sunflower seeds as most native birds like them. Birds play an important role in pest control and seed dispersal in our college gardens, so we wanted to attract as many species as possible.
This really paid off as by June, staff had noticed 2 pairs of nesting wrens in different locations in the gardens, mum and dad taking it in turns to bring beakfuls of insects back to their nests.
Sustainability trips and volunteering
Year 7 undertook the annual beaver tracking expedition on the river Stour near Canterbury in March, successfully tracking field signs of beaver activity to find their lodge.
In June, Year 7 learned about the benefits of re-wilding a variety of native British species at Wildwood in Kent. They also learned how to undertake a scientific invertebrate survey for use next year in the College gardens.
Year 8 travelled to the SOIL exhibition at Somerset House where they developed their understanding of the microscopic world under our feet, and especially the potential role of fungi in recycling plastics and ‘growing’ plastic free, environmentally friendly packaging.
A group of Year 12 students participated in the Sustainable Engineering Innovation workshop at Dukes House in June.
Year 8 undertook some volunteer gardening for the Chatham INTRA Trust with Claudia Chiappini, our Art teacher whilst Year 7 embarked on litter picking in the local community with Jenny Duff, our Equality and Diversity Lead.
