Sustainability at Varndean Sixth Form College

Environmental sustainability is at our core, we are committed to carbon literacy, becoming carbon neutral and developing our estate as an area of biodiversity as part of our Strategic Plan.

Our efforts to achieve this are award winning:

• In September 2022, Varndean Sixth Form College was the first college to be awarded the Bronze status as a Carbon Literate Organisation. This is the visible 'badge' that shows we are both committed to Carbon Literacy and serious about maintaining our low carbon culture. We are the only college in the South East to achieve this to date.

• In March 2023, the College was awarded the Association of Colleges (AOC) Beacon Award as part of the FE Sussex Partnership for our work in Education for Sustainable Development (ESD).

• In June 2023, Varndean Sixth Form College was awarded the Sixth Form Colleges Association (SFCA) Award for Sustainability for green initiatives. The SFCA Awards celebrates and showcases outstanding practice in the 16-19 sector.

The Climate and Environment Action Group leads the college on sustainability. It meets half termly and its membership comprises:

• Donna-Marie Jansen - Principal and group chair

• James Gordon - Deputy Principal

• Elaine French - Vice Principal - Resources

• Dan Loader - Canteen Manager

• Andy Watson - Site Manager

• Lena Bentley - Library Representative

• Ziggy Guldhoj - Student Union Environment Officer

• Additional student members

• Noami Lask - Climate and Environment Lead

Our approach to sustainability can be split into 6 key areas that you can explore on this site:

• Student leadership and engagement

• Carbon Literacy

• Food

• Biodiversity on campus

• Energy

• Waste reduction

For more information about sustainability at Varndean Sixth Form College, please contact Noami Lask (nbl@varndean.ac.uk), College Climate and Environment Lead.