In February a local writing competition was held, with the theme of Clean Growth, as an offshoot of the Sidmouth Science Festival. Here are two of the winning entries. Eight-year-old Oliver Stevens is runner-up in the primary school category with his Climate Change Rap, and Elisabeth Robertson is joint winner in the public category with The Sea is Full of Plastic.

What I would do to help stop the effects of climate change on Sidmouth…

Climate Change Rap

I would ban all plastic from our school

Single use plastic is not cool!

Now listen here to this, cool dude,

Don’t wrap plastic around your food!

Cutting down trees is not the way

If you do this our planet will pay.

Don’t buy palm oil because forests get cut down

More greenhouse gases get released in our town.

Stop leaving litter on the beach

Otherwise the animals it will reach

Doing all this will keep our town clean

And a healthier planet this will mean!

By Oliver Stevens Class 3/4S Sidmouth CE Primary, age 8

The sea is full of plastic

The sea is full of plastic, there’s litter on the beach

There’s hordes and hordes of parking cars, choking up the streets

We’re squandering resources, without a thought or care

And adding to the burden of the carbon in the air

The temperature is rising, it’s too good to be true

As it’s bringing types of weather, the like of which we never knew

The world is out to self-destruct, I’m feeling down and blue

Surely there are things to help that you and I can do?

We’re each like tiny pebbles, sitting out of reach

But massed together, stone on stone, collectively, a beach!

We need to audit lifestyles, we really have to try

If only so that we can look our young folk in the eye

Walking’s good

It keeps you fit

Saves taking out a car

Cuts down the fumes

Frees up the streets

Shows you where you are

Connect with nature

Plant a tree

Eat fruit and veg in season

Encourage wildflowers in your lawn

Don’t weed-kill without reason

Use local shops and local trades

Support your nearby town

By cutting all those extra miles

We’ll keep carbon levels down

Eating, drinking on the go?

Think ahead and plan

Take a cup

A sandwich box

Cut packaging where you can

Upcycling is lots of fun

Find your creative side

Re-jig old stuff

You’ll be amazed

What treasures you may find

Plastic’s great!

Such useful stuff

We use it everywhere

Don’t treat it as a throw-away

Re-use, re-use with care

Take an interest in your neighbours

Focus on well-being

Look outward -

Think of consequences and

Exactly what you’re doing

The sea is full of plastic, there’s litter on the beach

Become aware and do your share

To avert climate change catastrophe.

By Elisabeth Robertson