Gorse Hall school celebrates another Eco-Schools Green Flag triumph!

It was a “Magnificent Seven” for the pupils and staff at Gorse Hall School celebrating a cache of top awards this academic School year. To mark this prestigious occasion the Rt Hon Jonathon Reynolds was invited into school to present the awards.

This academic year, pupils at Gorse Hall School have continued to lead the way in promoting sustainability and raising environmental awareness among their school community, including peers, staff members, and the wider local community. Their exceptional efforts have once again been recognised with the prestigious, internationally recognised Eco-Schools Green Flag accreditation with a Distinction!

This year, pupils impressively tackled three key areas: Waste, Healthy Living and Biodiversity. Working together, they created a detailed and impactful year-long action plan to address these priorities. Activities included litter picking, recycling clothing and promoting biodiversity in our micro forest.

Speaking about their achievements, Teacher Kathleen Hughes Eco -coordinator said, “We are so proud of our children: Pupil Voice is very loud at Gorse Hall School and they are very passionate about making a difference towards mitigating climate change and saving the planet!”

Eco-Schools England Manager, Adam Flint, expressed: "Every year, we are amazed by the incredible efforts of young people working together to create a better future for all. Their collective impact is truly remarkable. If everyone approached the climate crisis with the same level of passion and determination, we could resolve it much faster and make it a problem of the past. At Keep Britain Tidy, we are delighted to recognise their achievements with the Eco-Schools Green Flag."

To learn more about the Eco-Schools programme and accreditation, head to www.eco-schools.org.uk.

School Games Gold Award:

This Award celebrates our schools commitment to developing competitive sports in school and the community and allows us to assess our PE provision and create an action plan for improvement. This award also reflects inclusion, SEND & LGBTQ opportunities.

AcSEED Award:

The AcSEED Award recognises schools and colleges in the UK for their commitment to promoting emotional wellbeing and mental health support for students.

Arts Mark Gold Award:

This Award recognises our school’s exceptional commitment to creativity across the whole curriculum.

SEND Award:

The SEND Inclusion Award recognizes schools and individuals for their commitment to providing high-quality education and support for students with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

Green Champions Award Stitch Club

Awarded for our commitment to raising awareness about fast –fashion and the negative effect it is having on our environment (landfill) and well-being (pressure to buy new)

We have been focusing on upcycling, recreating, sharing and buying second –hand first.

Forest School Level 3 Providers Award: Learning through nature by encouraging children to explore and learn in our woodland setting through play, exploration and supported risk-taking.

Headteacher Miss Flood said: "I am delighted with this year's awards and achievements as it reflects our creative and dynamic school culture making Gorse Hall a more enjoyable and fulfilling place to thrive."

You can view all images from Gorse Hall and order your digital download at notreallyheregroup.photo

Gorse Hall Primary School warmly welcomed, Deborah Brown, author and Grief and Loss Consultant, into school last week. Deborah has been supporting some of the children on their journey through loss and recovery. Through journaling, the children have had the space to reflect and express their feelings at their own pace, finding comfort in their words and memories.

The children shared these journals with the Rt Hon Jonathan Reynolds MP, who acknowledged the invaluable support that Deborah and her team provide to children, whether grieving the death of a loved one, experiencing family breakdown, illness, or other significant life changes.

In addition to journaling, the children (and adults!) had a great time with Monster dry-clay modelling to create a monster design for the next journals in the series, all while chatting about their experiences. 

Deborah Brown said: "Gorse Hall is leading the way in supporting their children and staff, being two years ahead of the new RSE curriculum of 2026, which will include teaching on death, dying, and bereavement. They have embraced our training opportunities and introduced our journals to children who need them. Their feedback has been invaluable to us. The journals provide support for children on sensitive topics such as parental separation, death by suicide, pet loss, serious and terminal illness, the death of a grandparent or parent, and when a loved one is in prison. We’ve been truly humbled by the feedback from both children and staff about how these resources have helped.

"We have many more guides in this series planned, including Kids' Helpful Guide: When a sibling dies, Kids' Helpful Guide: When a friend dies, and Kids' Helpful Guide: When I live in Foster Care or the Care System. It’s clear how much children need these resources, and how essential it is to equip adults with the training and supporting materials to support them effectively.

"We are incredibly grateful to Jonathan Reynolds MP and Dave Sweeton, Local Area Councillor, for their support of our work and for taking the time to attend Gorse Hall Primary School to talk to the staff and children about the impact of the Lessons in Loss project."

For a deeper insight into Deborah's work, listen to the recent podcast with Dave Sweeton on Tameside Radio: Podcast Link.

You can view all images from Gorse Hall and order your digital download at notreallyheregroup.photo