Schools lead the shift to zero carbon

While the government announces a u-turn on net zero pledges, schools are still trailblazing the journey to zero carbon, says Alex Green, head of the Let’s Go Zero campaign

The government appears to be back-peddling on climate initiatives to transition away from fossil fuels, yet it’s not stopping schools from taking action. Schools across the UK are leading the way by showing their intent and ambition to reach zero carbon by signing up to Let’s Go Zero. This proves to government that demand for a zerocarbon world is growing day-by-day. There are now over 2,500 schools, colleges and nurseries signed up to the Let’s Go Zero campaign, which supports schools to reach zero carbon by 2030.
    
Let’s Go Zero is calling for the government to commit to all UK schools being zero carbon by 2030, to announce long-term and consistent policies and funding to enable this, and to invest in adapting and retrofitting the school estate.
    
Representing 2,514 schools including over 186, 560 teachers and 1,205,000 pupils, our campaign points out that the Department for Education’s new Sustainability and Climate Change strategy released in April 2022 includes several steps in the right direction. But it does not go anywhere near far enough or fast enough in the face of a climate emergency.
While schools wait for government support, Let’s Go Zero has some exciting new projects boosting climate action in schools across England. A new £10 million partnership between Green Future Investments Ltd (GFIL) and Let’s Go Zero brings expert advice to thousands of individual schools, colleges, and nurseries via 30 climate advisors in nine regions of England, while also unlocking finance at scale from the public and private sectors.

Climate advisors

The regional climate advisors will provide on-the-ground guidance to help schools fast track decarbonisation changes such as moving towards more energy-efficient buildings and on-site energy generation, improved green spaces, and reduced waste – all interventions that reduce emissions and inspire students.
    
Climate advisors are now in place for the East and West Midlands, and schools are encouraged to get in touch with Let’s Go Zero for support. Recruitment for London, southeast and southwest regions will start next month, with the rest of England covered by summer 2024.
    
The climate action advisors are a unique offer for school decision-makers to access unbiased guidance on climate action. This helps school leaders understand impact and progress from quick wins to more intensive actions – linking to the latest Department for Education Climate Action Plan guidance and reporting requirements.
    
So many schools tell us they are eager to decarbonise further but lack the support and investment to do so. This project sparks action in schools across the country – as well as creating impact at a national level, so we’re really pleased to be working with Green Future Investments on this ambitious, inspiring initiative.

Going further

While the partnership’s first strand is establishing the climate action advisors, a second will be a long-term collaboration of experts to develop innovative finance solutions for school decarbonisation.     

This will bring together key players in public and private finance to support increased retrofit funding opportunities.  

The final element is the Zero Carbon Fund, supporting and scaling existing programmes and organisations working with schools to create even more impact and legacy.
    
And we’re not stopping there. Another brilliant initiative we’re running is the OVO Foundation Nature Prize. This gives away up to £1,000 for schools to kickstart a community nature project. Students with great green ideas can use these funds to create school nature spaces, bringing to life a wild and wonderful space packed with learning opportunities.

The competition supports schools, particularly those in less advantaged areas, to boost students’ access to nature, encourage biodiversity in their grounds, and take climate action. There are 25 prizes available: 10 prizes of £1,000 and 15 prizes of £200 and is open from now until Monday 27 November.

Building on success

Schools are key sites for climate action. With 42 per cent of all UK households having children of school age, schools have enormous reach and can spread awareness and behaviour change throughout their communities.
    
The largest academy trust for primary schools, REAch2, which supports 60 primary schools across England, has just started its journey on climate action and sustainability by joining Let’s Go Zero. It has created a six-point strategy which encompasses sustainability throughout the Trust – this includes looking into policies, process and procurement, adds environmental impact into everything it does and embeds sustainability into the culture of all its schools. It is also looking at reducing emissions from its school estate and improving school grounds to support the curriculum and improve biodiversity.  

Tim Culpin, REAch2 Sustainability Lead, only took up the climate action post less than a year ago and said he had been overwhelmed by the support he’s received from people outside the Trust, from different organisations and businesses, who have a great deal of expertise and want to do the right thing. Mr Culpin’s aim is to bring every school in the Trust along on this journey in a way that works for everyone – both urban and rural. The school believes this approach needs to become an integral part of each school’s culture, not just as an Eco Club add-on for a select few. Every child must leave school with a clear awareness of the steps they can take to contribute positively to people and the planet.

CEO of REAch2, Cathie Paine, said many of their schools had embarked on inspiring projects, awards and achievements, and genuine progress towards sustainability at every level. But she was keen to impress that it goes beyond that. To truly prioritise sustainability across the Trust, they need to ensure that what is achieved by schools already on this journey is attainable for all.

The Let’s Go Zero campaign not only empowers children but supports staff in schools too as they are providing teachers with much-needed knowledge and skills through valuable Continuing Professional Development opportunities.

Let’s Go Zero helps schools work together to lower their carbon emissions, shares practical advice and links schools with opportunities for funding and other support from the 15 Let’s Go Zero coalition members. These include a range of NGOs working on environmental guidance for schools, from ready-made lesson plans and project ideas to webinars and case studies. We also work with government to secure policies and investment needed for school decarbonisation.

^{Image shows Bellevue Place Education Trust.}