Stoke Newington’s first Islamic boys school has been using biodiesel made from cooking oil to power its school minibus.
Tawhid Boys School began the scheme in September 2010 and saves £600 a year on fuel costs.
Deputy Head Yahya Rawat, who initiated the project, said: “I initially began to use biodiesel in my own car and as part of the Healthy Schools Policy decided to extend this to the school minibus.
“Every six weeks we collect about 100 litres of cooking oil which is exchanged for about 50 litres of biodiesel.”
He added that the community response has been “spectacular” and mentioned how “some people randomly leave used oil outside the school gate in response to our project.”
He added: “The only downside is the smell of chips as the minibus travels around the area.”
Head teacher Usman Mapara said: “It is a very good project which gives the boys a sense of responsibility for the environment and the importance of recycling.”
Despite the ingenious concept, a spokesman from the Purefuels Recycling Centre in Edmonton lamented the lack of schools and official bodies in following the example of Tawhid.
“Officialdom doesn’t like alternatives, there’s too many warranties and that kind of thing to consider,” he said.
The school, which opened in 2001, received the third of three STAR (School Travel Accredited and Recognised) awards last October from Transport for London. The awards recognise excellence in school travel plans, with Tawhid, achieving ‘outstanding’ status every year since 2010.
