Classic Cottages donate environmental books to schools across Sussex

We are delighted to be supporting primary schools across Sussex by supplying over 3000 best-selling environmental children’s books, written by inspirational campaigner Ellie Jackson, author of Wild Tribe Heroes.

In June 2025, we supported Plastic Free Eastbourne on a beach clean as part of our commitment to local community and sustainability projects across the UK. Rather than purchase equipment for the beach clean, organiser Oliver suggested that we invest in educational materials for primary schools in the area and we were more than happy to oblige. Ellie Jackson has written 10 full sets of Wild Tribe Heroes books, the ideal introduction to young readers on real-world issues such as plastic pollution, climate change and habitat loss. Since its inception in 2017, the collection has been read by over two million children around the UK in libraries, schools and pre-schools and Ellie has received personal letters of congratulations from Sir David Attenborough and King Charles III. 

Drawing on her experience of living on Magnetic Island on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, Ellie and her young family witnessed the heart warming release of a turtle named Duffy back into the ocean after spending a year being treated for ingesting plastic. The family then visited a turtle hospital on the mainland, which inspired her children to pick up litter from beaches to protect turtles. This led to Ellie writing engaging stories to inspire children and young people to protect our planet and make positive changes in their own lives and communities. The first book, Duffy’s Lucky Escape is based on true events, beautifully illustrated and giving a clear message of the urgent need to protect our environment. 

Now based in Cornwall, Ellie says “I’m thrilled that Classic Cottages is helping to share these stories with so many children in Eastbourne and the Sussex area. The books are all about empowering children to make a difference - whether that’s through recycling, litter picking, energy conservation, planting trees or simply caring about the world around them.”

Oliver Sterno from Plastic Free Eastbourne commented “Ellie Jackson's 'Wild Tribe Heroes' collection of educational books is helping to drive our local campaign forward. Each book is about a creature who faces a challenge with environmental issues however the outcome of each story is always positive. Meanwhile, the reader learns how to become involved in trying to improve our world. Classic Cottages has been working recently with Plastic Free Eastbourne, bringing our two organisations together in our efforts to make a positive difference in the way we live. The schools which will be benefiting from this generous provision have already shown their commitment to encouraging their pupils to face the challenges of our environment."

The Wild Tribe Heroes website has a School Zone to help teachers access online and digital resources. If you would like to learn more or to purchase these wonderful books visit www.wildtribeheroes.com