Sutton School launches Community Fridge to reduce food waste

The school was inspired to host the fridge through the Small Change Big Difference campaign that has been working with Year 5 pupils over the past five weeks. The Small Change Big Difference workshop programme has been encouraging pupils to eat healthily and sustainably, reduce the amount of food wasted at home and recycle more of the inedible bits.

Launched at the school’s community campaign day on 5 February, the school hopes the fridge will prevent food waste by sharing unused foods whilst also supporting the local community.

Mr Dennis, Assistant Head Teacher at Dorchester Primary said, “The opportunity to trade and share food will definitely build more links in the community. I also certainly hope to see a shift in attitude towards reducing food waste, as well as experimenting more creatively with food leftovers or uneaten fridge contents."

As part of the Small Change Big Difference programme pupils enjoyed trying new fruit and veg, learning about correct portion sizes and what foods are good for them and the planet, helping Sutton make small changes that can have a big difference in reducing London’s food waste.

The campaign day was an opportunity for Year 5 pupils to share their learnings with the rest of the school community; offering ideas for using up leftovers with their bicycle-powered smoothies and pizzas made using leftover vegetables.

Artie, Year 5 pupil said, “My favourite part of the campaign is just doing as much as I can to stop the problem of food waste. We’ve been having loads of pledges and anybody can take part, we’ve been giving out notes and pamphlets of information to try and get people to follow us and join our campaign”

According to research, London households throw away 910,000 tonnes of food each year, of which 640,000 tonnes could have been eaten. Not only is this waste environmentally damaging but it also comes at a cost of up to £70 a month for the
average family. If Londoners change the way they shop, prepare, store, eat and dispose of food, this number could be reduced drastically. Two other Sutton schools are taking part in the campaign before the London Schools pilot programme comes to an end, with teaching resources soon being made available to download.

The workshops were delivered by environmental and social regeneration charity, Groundwork London, which is part of the TRiFOCAL London project; an pilot campaign funded by the EU LIFE programme and managed by sustainability
experts WRAP. 

The campaign also includes a bite-sized training session for community leaders and groups to learn how to make an impact in their local area. More campaign activity in Sutton is to follow with a public event taking place between now and March so watch this space.

For more information please go to www.sutton.gov.uk/smallchangebigdifference