Putney’s “BREATHE” initiative was developed to make a positive impact on the lives of Wandsworth school children and local residents by tackling environmental issues in our borough.

Launched by MP Justine Greening on 24 September, we planned to reduce the carbon footprint of our school by launching some simple initiatives to cut pollution levels, recycle more efficiently, reduce food waste and cut unnecessary use of electricity, over one week.

By reducing the number of pupils and parents coming to school by car for just five days – asking them to either walk, cycle or take one of TFL’s new green buses instead – we wanted to demonstrate a measurable reduction in pollution levels that could encourage a long term change in behaviour.

We gathered data throughout the week to document and measure all the efforts made and to show how much is possible with a relatively small shift in mindset and when local community pulls together.