Climate and Sustainability

at

Holy Trinity & St John’s CE Primary School

What do we believe?

The Church of England’s vision of education, ‘Deeply Christian, Serving the common good (2026)’ states ‘Good schools open up horizons of hope and aspiration and guide pupils into ways of fulfilling them… rooted in God’s love and compassion for all people and for the whole of creation.’

As a Christian school, we encourage our children to:

• Follow Jesus’ example, being brave, having a voice and believing in ourselves
• Fulfil their potential and make a positive difference to the world
• Be responsible for themselves and others
• Respect life in all its forms,
• Be courageous to stand up for what they believe in.

Therefore, our Sustainability Climate Action Plan for 2026 (and beyond) is bound by these core values of Courage, Compassion and Community and ensures all those within our school community promote and protect God’s world.

What is climate change?

The dictionary definition is:

“A change in global or regional climate patterns, in particular a change apparent from the mid to late 20th Century onwards and attributed largely to the increased levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide produce by the use of fossil fuels.”

There are many factors that can make the Earth warmer and colder, including:

• greenhouse gases caused by human activity,
• deforestation, where more than half of the world’s surface has been ploughed and paved
• ozone layer trapping heat closer to the Earth’s surface
• different types of air pollution which have different effects on the atmosphere.

“The challenge of climate change is formidable. For children and young people to meet it with determination, and not with despair, we must offer them not just truth, but also hope. Learners need to know the truth about climate change – through knowledge-rich education. They must also be given the hope that they can be agents of change, through hands-on activity and, as they progress, through guidance and programmes allowing them to pursue a green career pathway in their chosen field.” (DFE 2023)

 

What can we do?

The DFE has called on all education sectors to create a sustainability climate action plan to show how we, as a school community, can support national and international initiatives which are aimed at protecting the world through direct climate action.

As a school, we have an important role to play in this, particularly reducing our environmental footprint to work towards net-zero and giving all children and adults the knowledge and skills to thrive in the green economy and to help restore nature.

Through our Climate and Sustainability Policy and Action Plan, we will engage directly with children who are passionate about the natural world, want to do their best to protect it and, through their behaviour, influence their wider communities.

Through their learned and lived experiences from Early Years to Year 6, our children will develop a broad knowledge and understanding of the importance of nature, sustainability and the causes and impact of climate change and to translate this knowledge into positive action and solutions.

Using the four areas identified in the DFE’s Sustainability and Climate Change Strategy, the Climate and Sustainability Action Plan will focus on:

Decarbonisation, e.g., taking action to reduce carbon emissions and becoming more energy efficient.

Adaptation and Resilience, e.g., taking action to reduce the risk of flooding and overheating.

Improving the Environment and Biodiversity, e.g., engaging with nature

Climate Education and Green Careers, e.g., knowledge-rich comprehensive teaching about climate change.

It will also include:

Creating an environment from an early age where we can connect to nature is essential for self-enforcement in protecting and valuing nature.

Ensuring our children will:

• spend time in nature and learn more about it
• become actively involved in the improvement of their local environment
• know that regular contact with green spaces can have a beneficial impact on their physical and mental health.

Climate adaptation and decarbonisation activities can provide powerful learning opportunities.

Ensuring, our children will:

• participate in the implementation of climate adaptation measures
• learn in buildings designed for net-zero
• find out more about the impact of energy and water use
• see sustainability brought to life in the surrounding buildings, allowing them to gain experiences which will enhance and contextualise their learning

If you would like to know more:

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/sustainability-leadership-and-climate-action-plans-in-education

https://letsgozero.org/