6 Year Old Pupil Wins £15,000 for Primary School

Six year old Jemima has won £15,000 for Sandwich Infant School by winning a competition to design a school for the future.

Jemima entered a national competition to come up with a design for an “exciting and creative sustainable school of the future”.

In Jemima’s imaginary school of the future, the roof would double up as a classroom for outside lessons, honey and food would be grown on school grounds and pupils would each have litter-pickers and would ride bikes to create electricity.

“In my imaginary school, we will learn to be kind because when you are kind, you look after the planet and try to save it,” Jemima said in her competition entry.

The competition, Get Set for Positive Energy, is run by British Gas, Team GB and Paralympics GB. It was held to help young people understand the role we can all play to save energy and create a greener future.

Paralympic 100m champion Thomas Young and former Team GB 100m sprinter Ashley Nelson presented Jemima with the £15,000 cheque for her school.

Leanne Bennett, Headteacher of Sandwich Infant School, praised Jemima’s “incredible design” and said the school was “absolutely thrilled” to receive the funds. The school is considering spending the money on LED lighting or double glazing.

“We are also thinking about which of Jemima’s ideas we can implement at Sandwich Infant School,” Ms Bennett said.

Sandwich Infant School is part of Aquila, the Diocese of Canterbury Academies Trust.

To listen to Jemima's interview on Radio Kent click here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/live:bbc_radio_kent  (10:52-10:57)