Step 6 Monitoring and Evaluation

Assessing the impact of the topic work in your action plan, addressing what worked well, what needed adapting and how your school (or nursery) could develop eco-actions in the future.

Monitoring and Evaluation Criteria

In order to achieve the international Eco-Schools Green Flag award a school or nursery must meet the following criteria, which has been created for Early Years settings

Your Eco-Committee discuss and monitor the effectiveness of their three chosen topic areas with adult support.
Monitoring and evaluation outcomes are communicated to your school or nursery and evidence of monitoring and evaluation is displayed on your Eco-Board.

Monitoring and Evaluation Criteria Guidance

Further information about the Eco-Schools criteria for Step 6: Monitoring and Evaluation.

Evidence of monitoring and evaluation might include: photos, simple charts, other charity award schemes, surveys, a record of child-led discussion etc.
Actions in your Action Plan do not have to be entirely successful to achieve an Eco-Schools Green Flag, but when not successful the Eco-Schools team would expect adaptations to have been identified to improve the outcomes of future projects.
We recommend thinking about Monitoring early, when creating your Action Plan and beginning to look at this section of your Eco-Schools Green Flag Application in December.

Eco-Schools Team Tip

Early years monitoring can be nice and simple – if you have created a bug hotel, why not go on a bug hunt and count the bugs you find using bug identification sheets? If you have created a forest school area, before and after photos are great (just don’t forget to take the before photo)!

Monitoring and Evaluating Resources

A list of Monitoring and Evaluation resources you will be able to access when you login to your Eco-Schools account.

All Ages Bonus Environmental Impact Questions. A document to help you keep track of your progress should you choose to apply for an Eco-Schools Green Flag with Merit or Distinction.

Monitoring and Evaluation FAQs

Everything you need to know about Monitoring and Evaluation

One of our actions wasn’t successful, what should we do?

At Eco-Schools we know that not every action will be a success, but we still advise that you use this as evidence towards your Green Flag application.

One of our actions isn’t complete what should we do?

Some actions can take a long time to complete (e.g. planting tree saplings to create a forest school area). As long as you have started an action and can provide evidence of this, then please do not hesitate to apply for your Eco-Schools Green Flag award.

What evidence do we need for Step 6: Monitoring and Evaluation?

During the final stages of your Green Flag application, you will be asked to provide a photograph of your Eco-Board. Evidence of Monitoring and Evaluation on your Eco-Board could include: before and after photographs, surveys, charts, tables, reports or meter readings.

How much evidence do we need?

We request evidence for each of the three topics in your Action Plan.

Monitoring and Evaluation Examples

The Cooperative Childcare Carterton, Oxfordshire

The minutes taken by the Eco-Committee at Carterton are absolutely fabulous - a perfect record of their Eco-Schools discussion... but we also love how committee members young and old have monitored the eco-projects in their Action Plan! Children built a bug hotel to encourage more wildlife into their garden using discarded pallets and plants they decided insects would like, they then completed frequent insect hunts to see if their hotel was attracting visitors. They also made bird feeders from seeds, coconut oil and rolled cardboard and now complete regular birdwatches. Staff also monitor their young environmentalists by listening out for environmental discussion relating to issues taught!

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