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Home > Corporate > Press Release > Schools back green agenda despite half being unaware of government strategy

November, 2008

Teachers are increasingly becoming "sustainability champions", says new survey from The Consortium

Environmental and "green" issues are high on the agenda for most schools – despite almost half of teachers not being aware of the government’s much-trumpeted sustainability strategy for education.

The Department for Children, Schools and Families’ (DCSF), "National Sustainable Schools Framework" consists of eight "doorways to sustainability" to help guide teachers in their efforts to instil green practices into young minds.

Yet two years and a major publicity campaign later, just under half of teachers say they are not familiar with the strategy.

That is one of the findings of a new "green schools survey" of teachers carried out by leading provider of supplies to the education sector, The Consortium. The survey was conducted with teachers across the UK and included secondary, primary, first and junior schools.

Regardless of the government campaign’s perceived failings, a massive 92 per cent of teachers who took part in the survey said their school made a conscious effort to incorporate sustainability into the curriculum where appropriate.

Another 65 per cent said efforts had been made to ascertain their schools’ carbon footprints and 88 per cent said staff and pupils were encouraged to be more energy-conscious.

No doubt encouraged by the likes of Jamie Oliver banging the drum about the importance of healthy and locally-produced food for our children and young people, 40 per cent of schools said they now maintain a vegetable patch and grow their own food. Meanwhile 91 per cent said their schools actively encourage healthy eating among students and made fresh, organic fruit and vegetables available.

Brian Potter, Sales and Marketing Director at The Consortium, said: "Clearly schools up and down the country are putting sustainability at the core of most of what they do, but it appears the government’s campaign hasn’t been the driving factor here."

Global warming and climate change are rarely out of the headlines, and this seems to have had an effect on schools’ attitudes towards the environment, with nearly two thirds (61 per cent) saying efforts to raise awareness of sustainability issues among pupils had increased in the last six months alone.

However, just 56 per cent say they have a formal recycling policy and almost half (42 per cent) recycle no more than a quarter of their waste, yet 61 per cent said they had someone responsible for sustainability in the school.

Respondents to the survey were encouraged to add their comments about sustainability in schools, and there was a sense that their willingness to participate in green initiatives was hampered by that perennial of the education sector - lack of funding.

"We are a large inner city school and moving along the journey to sustainability," said one. "However, as with most things it’s down to money. What chance do we have of providing local organic free meals?"

A large majority (83 per cent) of schools said they had not taken advantage of funding or grant opportunities, and although many indicated they were exploring the possibility of doing so, they also expressed frustration at not knowing who to turn to for help and advice.

One respondent said: "Having just appointed a student eco-council we have agreed the scope of a green audit and intend to begin with recycling and energy-saving measures.

"But I’m not sure how or where you find out about this stuff, e.g. grants, funding for sustainable equipment and so on, so if information was more readily available we could implement more initiatives."

Another said: "Although we have not applied for any grants yet we are currently developing an action plan to increase our environmental work within the school."

An area of the DSFC’s eight-point route to sustainability which appears to have been embraced by most schools involves transport, with nearly three quarters (73 per cent) confirming they had sustainable transport policies and encouraged staff, parents and pupils to walk, cycle or use public transport to get to school.

When asked to compare how pupils travelled to school now compared to five years ago, 29 per cent said more were walking, 11 per cent said more were using public transport and 8 per cent said more were cycling to and from school.

When asked to estimate what proportion of staff currently walked, cycled or used public transport to get to school the vast majority (81 per cent) of respondents said no more than a quarter at their school did so.

Many respondents pointed out that for schools in rural locations the key to meeting their sustainability targets was better public transport.

"Most of the children walk or cycle if possible," said one. "But for some the distance is too great." Another commented: "We are a village school with little or no public transport and most staff live at least 10 miles away."

"The general feeling among teachers seems to be that they fully support the green agenda," said Brian Potter. "In almost all aspects of our survey they responded positively and are championing the cause, which will inevitably inspire their students and pupils to carry on this work into their lives outside school.

"Although the survey included teachers employed in both urban and rural schools, it did not differentiate between them, although I’d like to think that whatever the setting, green issues and sustainability is high on the agenda."