Warwickshire News Mine

And in a closely fought competition the trophy went to Chantry High School from Worcestershire, victors over Kenilworth School in Warwickshire and Stoke Park School in Coventry.

Six Warwickshire secondary schools - Kenilworth School, Aylesford School, Polesworth International Language College, Southam College, Rugby High School, and Shipston High Shool - competed late last year to decide who would go forward to represent the county in the sustainability-based quiz.

And in a tense final the Warwickshire team were at times neck and neck with Chantry, but a couple of excellent finals rounds saw Chantry win with 76 - 71.5 to Kenilworth and 64 to Stoke.

Based on the format of the popular TV show University Challenge the event was organised by Warwickshire County Council as part of the Switch it Off campaign.

The campaign aims to get across the simple message to turn off unwanted electrical appliances and not to leave anything on standby.

And as part of the climate change message at the heart of Switch it Off the ‘Universally Challenged’ event saw Year 8 pupils put their environmental knowledge to the test.

Hosted by the University of Warwick, sponsors of the event, the competition took place over six rounds, including questions on such varied subjects as biodiversity, fair trade and recycling.

And with tough questions, such as ‘which chocolate bar will be fair trade by the end of the summer?’ and ‘What product are the Windward Islands famous for exporting?’ the competition was fierce, with teams often scoring top marks in the rounds.

Cllr Martin Heatley, Warwickshire County Council’s Portfolio Holder for the Environment, said: “The Switch it Off campaign was a huge success and I’m delighted to see the campaign continuing and involving young people.

“It may sound like a cliché, but the young people are our future and if we don’t get the message across to them about saving energy and living more sustainably, then the future would look pretty bleak.”

More information on the Switch it Off campaign is available at http://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/switchitoff

Link to WCC