...and children asked to write to him about their future

AN environmental campaigner has encouraged primary schoolchildren to write to Henley MP John Howell urging him to help tackle climate change.

Kate Oldridge spoke to more than 60 pupils at Badgemore Primary School in Hop Gardens, Henley, about the challenges of global warming and what can be done to tackle it.

She is the Oxfordshire co-ordinator for Zero Hour, an environmental campaign group which wants the Climate and Ecology Bill to become law.

Ms Oldridge, who lives in Shiplake, said: “It was brilliant to spend some time with the children talking about the challenges we face on climate and nature and what we can all do to tackle these. They were so engaged and curious.

“I was very conscious of the huge responsibility that we, as adults, have to do everything we can to protect their futures.

“We talked about how each child has a powerful voice to speak up about the big changes to be made by the Government.”

The private members’ bill, which is currently in the House of Lords, would commit the Government to ensuring the global temperature does not rise 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels. The current level is 1.1 degrees but this is predicted to rise to 2.8 degrees by 2100.

Zero Hour Oxfordshire has produced an open letter to Oxfordshire’s six MPs calling for them to support the bill and a copy was symbolically handed in at Henley town hall on Friday.

Ms Oldridge, who is also a member of Greener Henley, said: “The children were keen to write to John Howell to ask him to help make these changes.

“It’s important for MPs to understand this is a piece of legislation that is critical for all of us. Each point of the degree has an exponential impact. We’re feeling the impacts now. There are small island nations where people are dying from flash floods and the issues are here as well with the heatwave. If we don’t make transformational change now, we will see this happen more and more.”

Ms Oldridge posed for a photo with the children holding a banner reading: “Climate & Ecology Bill for a Liveable Future.”

Among the children was Jack Pitt, 11, who is a member of the school’s Green Team, which has carried out litter picks, installed recycling bins in each classroom and has signed the school up to become plastic-free. Jack, who lives in Henley, said: “If you don’t care for the environment who knows what will happen? The more we help the environment the better things will be as it improves everything.”

Teaching assistant Amanda Hopkins, who leads the team, said: “It is important to get young people involved in the environment for the future of the planet.

“A lot of them are already very enthusiastic but are really concerned about what is happening to the world today and how to make a change. I was thrilled at the number of applications to be on the green team as it showed they thought about it and have concerns. That is why we need to have these discussions.”