Young climate activists from across Oldham converged on The Hathershaw College last Tuesday for the Pinnacle Learning Trust’s second annual Student Eco Conference, turning a grey spring morning into a blaze of green pledges and sap-stained hands.

Chief executive Jayne Clarke opened the gathering—timed to coincide with National Stop Food Waste Day—by telling more than 200 primary, secondary and sixth-form pupils that “the future of the planet sits in this hall today.” Her warning was followed by a roar of approval when students revealed projects already under way: zero-waste bake-sales, uniform swap-shops and a trust-wide pledge to cut lunchtime waste by 30 per cent before Christmas.

Oldham Sixth Form College mentors ran peer-to-peer workshops, coaxing shy 10-year-olds to sketch dream eco-schools powered by wind and walled with vegetables. “We’re not just talking; we’re building the blueprint,” said Year-12 facilitator Aminah Qureshi, 17, brandishing a hand-drawn map dotted with rooftop beehives.

A mindfulness session led by Hathershaw’s environmental lead Lisa Lott tackled “eco-anxiety,” teaching breathing techniques beneath a canopy of newly planted silver birches donated by the Woodland Trust. Minutes later, the same students were on their knees scattering wild-flower seed bombs between the roots, while finance director Stewart Ash—wielding a neon litter-grabber—cheered them on. “Who says accountants can’t pick up rubbish?” he laughed, stuffing a crisp packet into his sack.

Catering partner Churchills Group ended the day with a thunderous food-waste quiz, revealing that the average trust household throws away 30 kg of edible food a month. The prize for the winning team: a year’s supply of wonky veg and a promise from Churchills’ Sharon Taylor to turn tomorrow’s school curry into “today’s surplus rescue mission.”

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