Owen, a student in Year 11, leads Thornleigh College’s ECO Group that aims to improve the school’s environment. Over two weekends, the green-fingered students gave the flower beds makeovers and planted new displays. To fund it all, they raised money by making and selling birdseed cakes.

But Owen didn’t stop there. He’s also developed whole-school awareness by delivering assemblies aimed at improving awareness of the problems of litter around the site from inside a bin, combining humour with education.

Most recently, Owen’s been the figurehead for the introduction of recycling in the canteen. Working with the local authority Refuse Department and the school, Owen delivered assemblies and led other younger students to deliver the assemblies too.

Owen, a well-known figure around school, took his creativity for Creation a step further for World Book Day, creating -with a little help from his friends - a magical world in the school library, filled with characters form Alice in Wonderland and set in a woodland, complete with wildlife and flowers.

What they said: “A role model for the younger students” - Maria Pawlowski, Teacher.