The Big Lemon provides a number of services for schools, and has built up a good relationship with many of Brighton & Hove's best schools.  As well bus and coach hire, we offer educational opportunities around recycling, and tours of the recycling plant where our fuel is made.

In 2012 we are launching a new project to get children recycling cooking oil at school.  As a nation we're now very good at recycling old cooking oil from commercial premises, but really rubbish at recycling domestic waste oil.  But with the help of Brighton & Hove's schoolchildren, we're going to change that!

How it works

Quite simply, we go to the school and show the children what they have to do, give them a special Eko-Funnel which screws onto a normal drinks bottle, and put a few special Fatboxx bins in the school for them to pour the oil into.  Then the children go away and collect as much oil as they can, and we pop by every few weeks and collect it.  We can also run competitions for different classes, year groups and even schools, with prizes for groups that collect the most oil over a set period, and visits to our oil recycling centre for keen recyclers.

How much does it cost?

To get a scheme up and running at your school costs about £250 per 100 children.  This covers the cost of the funnels, the bins and some promotional material to get started with.  This cost would need to borne by the school or by a sponsor, but once the scheme is up and running there is the opportunity for the school to be paid for the oil and thereby offset the set-up costs.

What we get out of it

We get to work with children collecting more oil for our buses and teaching them about waste, energy, recycling and climate change.

What the school gets out of it

The school will be able to show practical examples of effective teaching of various parts of the national curriculum which also fit in very well with the requirements of Eco-Schools.  We will also pay the school for the oil we collect at the same rate as we pay for commercially-produced waste oil, and for entrepreneurially-minded children there is also an opportunity to manage the oil account like a business and learn key business skills at the same time.

What the children get out of it

The children get the opportunity to learn in a practical, fun way and win prizes for good teamwork.  Through recycling the oil they make a valuable difference to society and should be proud of their contribution.  They may also be lucky enough to go on a visit to the recycling plant... on a bus powered by the oil they've collected!

Is your school involved?

Below is a map of  schools in Brighton & Hove.  As schools join the scheme we will put their details on the pin on the map so schools can promote the good work they are doing.  If you would like your school to get involved, please email recycling@thebiglemon.com