In conjunction with schools and students, Southwark Council has produced an easy-to-use guide and template to help local schools take climate action. The guide will help education providers to create a climate action plan so they can go green and create new opportunities for students and staff alike. It will also help schools to comply with new government requirements.
The guide was launched at an event in Belham Primary School, where four local primary schools showcased green projects that students had been working on and were presented with certificates by the council. These included student-led projects like beehives to help improve biodiversity, and school refill shops for shampoo and shower gel.
The guide has been created in response to feedback from Southwark’s network of Climate Action Schools in the borough, to help with new Department for Education (DfE) requirements for all schools to have their own climate action plan in 2025. The DfE strategy states that “By 2025, all education settings will have nominated a sustainability lead and put in place a climate action plan”. However, creating a climate action plan is something which a number of schools lack the time or expertise to do.
The online guide has been created to overcome this challenge, with input from council specialists, educational staff at schools within Southwark, as well as students at St Michael’s Catholic College and Southwark’s Youth Parliament.
It includes an online guide and an easy to use template with ready-made examples. Schools are encouraged to copy these examples and make them their own. This should help them quickly get to grips with the new DfE requirements and have their own climate plan to put into action in 2025.
An online event for educators will be held on Thursday 14 November at 4pm to get more information and advice on using the guide and writing their climate action plan. Details for how to register for the event are available online.
Cllr Jasmine Ali, Southwark Council Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Children, Education and Refugees, said “Schools are an essential part of our programme of change. They help to shape future generations. As some of our largest institutions, they can have a huge impact on our emissions. We’re incredibly proud of the work they do to inspire and educate our borough’s children.
“They have a massive appetite to work together on climate change, and after hearing so much of the good work that our young activists are already doing, we’re thrilled to be able to offer this new free resource to help them do even more. So that our communities can start to heal our wounded environment, and prepare a healthy, sustainable future, free from the fear of climate catastrophe”
Cllr John Batteson, Cabinet Member for Climate Emergency, Jobs and Business, added “Schools have the potential to be a huge strength in our climate work. They can make changes in their buildings and on their grounds to reduce emissions, teach children new green skills, and also inspire our future generations to take action. If we’re going to achieve our goal of becoming a carbon neutral borough, then we need to harness this strength and our new guide will enable more schools to play their part in tackling the climate emergency.”
The guide has come out of the network of climate action schools in Southwark, which has been running since 2022. It provides a space where schools can share their work with each other and learn about new opportunities to support their goals. Any school in Southwark can join – whether a primary, secondary, or further education college. By being part of the network, the schools have access to:
- Resources, support and guidance for climate action
- Direct access to sustainability experts
- Collaborative and engaging workshops
If your school is not involved and you would like to join the network, they can sign up and get involved for free.