Waste to Watts at Beddington

This week, Year 4 pupils had the opportunity to visit the Beddington Energy Recovery Facility, and it was an eye-opening experience! They learned how the facility provides the South London Waste Partnership and regional businesses with a safe, cost-effective alternative to landfill. The facility treats approximately 347,000 tonnes of non-recyclable waste each year and generates enough electricity to power 71,397 homes. The children were fascinated by how the facility works hard to turn waste into energy and were especially excited to watch the giant arcade claw in action—just like the one in Toy Story! To further explore energy, they also used VR headsets to learn about how much energy is used in our homes. They were shocked to discover that a kettle uses a whopping 3,000 watts of energy—one of the highest consumers in the house! The trip fuelled everyone’s interest in energy, recycling, and engineering, and we now have plenty of budding sustainable energy researchers and engineers in the class!