British Principal Cuts Off Classrooms' Heat Amid Near-Freezing Temperatures to Lower Carbon Footprint

Some activists take their causes to the extreme.

Case in point: A principal at Ansford Academy (pictured above with students) in Castle Cary, England decided that the best way to teach students how to lower their "carbon footprint" and save the planet would be to simply turn off the classroom radiators...while temperatures dipped to a not-so-balmy 34°F outside.

Needless to say some faculty and parents -- whose children were shivering in gloves, coats and boots and who could barely even grip their pencils -- blasted Head Teacher Robert Benzie's "barbaric" idea.

One teacher calling it "beyond stupid" and "absolutely ridiculous."

The Sun adds:

"I've never worked in such cold. I'm all for saving the planet but this was barbaric.

"Nobody could work properly and kids could not even grip a pen through their gloves." The mum of a 12-year-old at Ansford Academy in Castle Cary, Somerset, said: "She was shaking when she came home. I was absolutely furious."

A dad added: "Turning the heating off in December is just mental.

"I can't believe the kids learnt anything. I'm very angry with the school."

But the 52-year-old Benzie defended the "successful" endeavor on Friday — which, according to The Sun, was the town's coldest recorded day of winter so far — vowing to stage regular "eco-days" in the future.

To justify his actions, Benzie said the idea was actually "thought up by a small number of pupils from our student eco-group," adding, "we cut the heat to see if we can lower our carbon footprint. We let pupils wear as many jumpers as they liked."

"Everyone seemed happy enough although it did get pretty chilly. We sent letters to parents telling them of the plan. We had only one complaint and that was from a member of staff. But in the end they just got on with it."

"I'd like it to be a regular event," Benzie said. "We have too much heating — sometimes I have to turn it down as it can make students fall asleep."

Clearly, Mr. Benzie intends for all 640 of his students to remain wide, wide awake.