Groundwork Luton & Bedfordshire is working with three Luton Schools to raise awareness of water pollution in the town. 

In February 2014, pupils from Leagrave Primary School, Chantry Primary Academy and Challney Girls High School spent a morning looking at the problems with the water quality in the River Lea in Luton, visiting tributary Lewsey Brook.

Then Monday 3 March saw the schools come together to discuss their findings and decide on the best way to tackle the issues they’d identified.

Following that, the pupils set to work designing posters to address the problem of misconnections (when foul water from homes flows into the river via surface drains) and encourage better care of the river.

On Wednesday 19 March, the schools were reunited at a Water Festival in the Stockwood Discovery Centre. While the students enjoyed a quiz (winning team pictured, right), their posters were judged by a panel of experts (Judy Adams, Chair of the River Lea Catchment Management Group, Josh Tinsley from the Environment Agency, Richard Park from Anglian Water, and Jane Showell, Luton Culture’s Marketing and Evaluation Manager).

There was strong competition but one pupil emerged as the winner (design pictured below): Sahin, aged 10, from Chantry Primary Academy. The two runners up were Sharlise (10), also from Chantry, and Parris (9) from Leagrave Primary School.

Only Rain Down the Drain poster

The winning posters will be displayed around Luton and one of the designs will be featured on mugs to promote and support the Environment Agency’s message that only rain should go down the drain.

The project was made possible through funding by Natural England and with the support of the Environment Agency.

 

Find out more about Only Rain Down the Drain.

Design by LTD Design Consultants and build by Garganey Consulting.