Sustainability policy: guidance and examples

Find guidance on what to include in your school's sustainability policy, based on the DfE's sustainability and climate change strategy. Look at example statements for inspiration, and see examples of sustainability and environmental policies from other schools.

Last reviewed on 8 June 2023See updates

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Contents

You're not required to have a sustainability policy
What to include in your policy
1. Aims and values
2. Roles and responsibilities
3. Curriculum and learning
4. Food and catering
5. Waste and recycling
6. Energy and water
7. Transport and travel
8. Buildings and grounds
Examples from other schools
Extend your thinking beyond a single policy

This article is based on the DfE’s sustainability and climate change strategy and guidance on sustainability leadership and climate action plans in education. You can read the full strategy or take a look at our summary article.

We'll update this article as the DfE publishes more information about its new initiatives. To be notified when this happens, click ‘save for later’ in the top right-hand corner of this page.

You're not required to have a sustainability policy

However, it's a good idea to start thinking about how you'll make changes for better sustainable practices across your school.

A sustainability policy can help you co-ordinate your school’s strategy as you prepare to create a climate action plan, as well as helping you to commit to making positive changes from today. These initiatives may also have other more immediate benefits, such as saving money and improving staff wellbeing.

The DfE aims for all schools to have a climate action plan in place by 2025, which should cover the 4 following areas:

Decarbonisation – taking actions to reduce carbon emissions, e.g. becoming more energy efficient
Adaptation and resilience – e.g. taking actions to reduce the risk of flooding and overheating
Biodiversity – e.g. by engaging with the National Education Nature Park and Climate Action Awards
Climate education and green careers – making sure the education you provide gives knowledge-rich and comprehensive teaching about climate change, and that your teaching staff and lecturers feel supported to offer this

You won’t be able to make every big change at once

Changing to a more sustainable infrastructure, in particular, may be beyond your capacity or budget right now.

You can use your policy to identify what steps your school can take at the moment, and what steps you want to plan for in the future.

What to include in your policy

This will depend on your school’s context – for example, your budget, phase and other situational factors, such as available green space.

Take a look at the below ideas, which tie in to the DfE's strategy linked above, and adapt them based on your context.

1. Aims and values

Think about what you’re trying to achieve with your sustainability policy and include your statement of intent in this section. To do this, consider how sustainability fits in with your school’s existing values; you can then come up with linked value statements on sustainability.

You could also use this section of your policy to list any pledges or schemes you've signed up for (including local networks and partnerships). For example:

Value statements including sustainability: examples

“We aim to enable every pupil to take positive action to help make our school a sustainable and caring community.”

“Our school values of kindness and compassion apply to our efforts to look after our environment.”

“Our sustainable approach aims to prepare pupils for a lifetime of sustainable choices."

“We will seek opportunities in our school procedures and budget to make positive environmental changes."

2. Roles and responsibilities

Planning and executing your sustainability strategy won't be just 1 person's job. Set out who will take on what responsibilities in this section of your policy.

This will depend on your staffing structure, but could include:

Role	Responsibilities
Headteacher and senior leaders	Make sure staff CPD plans cover sustainability, e.g. including climate change and sustainability in science teachers’ CPD, and providing sustainable usage training for all staff Review every subject policy in the next 12 months with an eye to sustainability and quality outdoor education Work with premises and school business staff to look at where to invest money to reduce carbon emissions, and improve sustainability and resilience Develop and deliver our school's climate action plan by 2025 Communicate the sustainability policy to the school community
Sustainability lead	Receive carbon literacy training and co-ordinate delivery of this training to all staff (if needed) Identify appropriate areas of the school grounds to use as an environmental classroom Encourage whole-school participation in environmental awareness days Lead a whole-school sustainably audit to identify current and future opportunities for change
Curriculum/subject leads	Carry out a sustainability audit for their subject, identifying opportunities to teach about the natural world, sustainable practices and the circular economy Identify ways to reduce usage and waste when teaching their subjects, e.g. reducing printing Incorporate Forest School and outdoor education into their curriculum area Apply the new primary science model curriculum with an emphasis on nature (primary) Deliver assemblies on green careers and skills (secondary)
School business manager	Carry out sustainable procurement practices by considering usage, waste and supply chains as part of the assessment and validation criteria used when purchasing goods and services Identify funding opportunities for sustainable development and lead bids for that funding, e.g. smart meters, low-carbon boiler replacement Communicate waste reduction practices in school to encourage sustainable and cost-effective behaviour, e.g. limiting printing, and turning off lights
Caretaker	Keep the school site clean and safe for effective outdoor learning Maintain verges around the school sports pitches as wild grassland areas to encourage biodiversity Make sure all lights, taps, and unnecessary appliances are switched off at the end of each day Conduct energy and water usage audits at the end of every term
Governors/trustees	Receive training on a whole-school approach to food Approve policies that have been reviewed with an eye to sustainability and quality outdoor education Monitor progress of our school's climate action plan For trusts: Consider and implement strategies for the trust to reduce waste by sharing resources between schools Review the sustainability of a school's practices and procedures when considering adding that school to the trust Communicate trust-wide values of environmentalism, sustainability and respect for the natural world

3. Curriculum and learning

The DfE's strategy, linked above, highlights the role of schools in engaging directly with children, who:

Are passionate about the natural world
Want to do their best to protect the natural world
Can influence their wider communities

Your curriculum should provide opportunities to develop a broad knowledge and understanding of nature, sustainability and climate change, and to translate this knowledge into positive action. Find out how to embed sustainability into your curriculum.

Your sustainability policy should reflect your commitment to embedding climate change and sustainability throughout your curriculum.

It’s okay to acknowledge that this won’t be a 1-day job. You can set out a longer-term roadmap for curriculum change, identifying future opportunities. For example, you may wish to plan to offer an environmental science A-level qualification, or a natural history GCSE, which will become available from 2025 (see section 1 of the DfE’s strategy).

Embedding sustainability in curriculum and learning: example initiatives

You could set out in your policy how you will:

Identify opportunities in the taught curriculum to learn about the natural world
Review every subject policy in the next 12 months with an eye to sustainability
Include international experiences of climate change and solutions for sustainability in your curriculum
Use appropriate areas of the school grounds as an environmental classroom
Participate in environmental awareness days such as Earth Day (22 April), World Ocean Day (8 June) and Clean Air Day (15 June)
Develop CPD and share best practice to support your teachers in delivering sustainability content
Create opportunities for pupils to engage with local businesses and encourage them to take up environmentally-friendly practices
Set up an eco-club or gardening club to help pupils learn about nature outside of the curriculum

4. Food and catering

In this section, set out your whole-school approach to making food and catering more sustainable at your school. The DfE is looking to encourage you to publish a statement about your school’s approach on your website by 2023.

This is another area where you may have to be honest and realistic, depending on your budget, and whether your catering is arranged by your school, or your local authority (LA) or trust.

Sustainable whole-school food approach: example initiatives

You may:

Commit to using locally-sourced food in school lunches wherever possible
Audit your food supply chains to make sure that your fish is from sustainable sources
Promote pupils’ understanding of food and where it comes from
Participate in ‘Meat-free Mondays’ or another scheme to reduce high-carbon food in your menus

5. Waste and recycling

Set out how your school will commit to initiatives that promote the circular economy. You could break this down into different areas of school life in your policy, as follows.

Recycling: example statements

“We will have clearly labelled bins throughout the school for recycling, food waste and general waste, and posters on how to use them.”
“Wherever possible, we will compost food waste from the kitchen and cafeteria, and use this to support the growth of food and other plants on the school site.”
“We will teach pupils about the different types of bin they might have in their homes, and encourage them to continue good recycling habits when they’re not at school.”

Reducing waste: example statements

“We will reduce paper waste by printing on both sides of paper wherever possible, having scrap-paper drawers and using emails as much as possible.”
“Staff will be encouraged to consider what materials can be reused the following year, when clearing out their classrooms at the end of a term or year.”
“We will encourage pupils to bring reusable water bottles into school rather than using disposable single-use plastics.”
“Pupils are encouraged to make their costumes for World Book Day and other themed days, rather than buying new costumes. We hold a prize for the best costume in each class/year group which focuses on creativity and reusing clothes and household items.”

Purchasing: example statements

"We will consider sustainability as part of the assessment and validation criteria for including suppliers on procurement frameworks, to support the sustainable purchasing of products and services."
“We run a second-hand shop for uniforms, bags and school equipment.”

6. Energy and water

Set out the steps you will take to reduce usage in your school. This can involve small steps, as well as infrastructure change, and may save you money as well as contributing to a more sustainable school.

Set out your commitment to deliver staff CPD about sustainable usage

Be realistic in your policy. Many steps to reduce energy and water use require investment in infrastructure. You can state that not all the changes you want to make are possible right now, but that you're committed to making them in the future.

For example, you could earmark money in future budgets or commit to applying for future grants for infrastructure improvements, such as:

Low-carbon boilers
Smart meter installation
Sustainable drainage systems

Take a look at our funds and freebies page to find out about future grants and funding opportunities.

As well as infrastructure change, include the small steps that you'll take as a school to reduce usage.

Reducing energy usage: example initiatives

You could look to reduce energy consumption with steps such as:

Delivering staff CPD to make staff more aware of energy usage
Switching off lights and appliances when they're not in use
Displaying information around the school to help pupils understand the importance of switching off appliances and saving energy
Installing draft excluders to retain warm air and reduce energy consumption for heating
Auditing the amount of energy used each term

Reducing water usage: example initiatives

You could look to reduce water consumption with steps such as:

Delivering staff CPD to make staff more aware of water usage
Turning off taps when not in use
Displaying posters reminding pupils of the importance of turning off taps and saving water
Beginning the installation of sensors on toilet taps to make sure they aren’t left on
Auditing water usage every term

7. Transport and travel

Include details of how you will encourage and support sustainable transport use in your school community. This will depend on your school’s location – for example, walking to school and using public transport may be more feasible in urban areas than rural ones. Set out the steps that your school will take.

Sustainable transport use: example statements

“We will provide a cycle to work scheme/travel card loan scheme for staff to help them travel to work more sustainably.”
“We will offer cycle safety lessons for all pupils in year 3 onwards.”
“We participate in National Walk and Roll to School Day with an themed assembly and sponsored walk.”
“Our school encourages staff to share lifts to off-site training wherever possible to reduce car use.”
“We audit the carbon footprint of our school trips. We use this information to consider more environmentally-friendly options, and have committed to offsetting the carbon of our annual whole-school pantomime trip.”

8. Buildings and grounds

Include information about how you will promote natural spaces and sustainable practices around your school site. This may cover a wide range of practices, depending on your school’s context.

School site sustainability: example initiatives

You could look to:

Make sure that there are enough rubbish bins and organise a litter-picking scheme to keep your school site clean
Set up a weather monitoring station to help pupils explore the weather and climate on your school site
Identify and protect existing natural habitats on the school site, and use them as an opportunity to teach pupils about the natural world
Make and develop new areas of biodiversity on the school site, for example by increasing plant diversity on grass that isn’t being used for sports pitches
Reduce pesticide and herbicide use, where possible

Examples from other schools

Rhodes Avenue Primary School, a community school in Haringey, has a sustainability policy (find it under 'ethos and inclusion policies'). It includes:

Food and drink
Purchasing and waste
Local and global dimensions of sustainability

St John’s CofE Primary School in Croydon organises its sustainability policy into 3 areas:

Caring for oneself
Caring for each other
Caring for the environment

Garlinge Primary and Nursery School in Kent includes information about the ‘5 Rs’ in its environmental policy: reduce, reuse, recycle, restore and respect.

Inclusive Multi Academy Trust has an environmental sustainability policy. Its policy covers:

The curriculum
Reducing carbon emissions
Healthy living

Extend your thinking beyond a single policy

Consider opportunities for sustainability when reviewing all of your policies and procedures.

Sustainable values and practices may help you achieve other aims around your school, such as:

British values	Electing pupil climate champions can help pupils to understand and participate in democracy
Pupil wellbeing	Creating pleasant spaces for pupils to spend time outside can help to boost pupil wellbeing Providing opportunities to take meaningful climate action can help to give young people a sense of agency and reduce their climate anxiety
The school budget	Consider whether cutting down on usage and waste, or even investing in higher-cost sustainable infrastructure could save your school money in both the short and long term
Healthy living	Learning about where food comes from and reducing processed or packaged food can contribute to healthy living
Community values and teamwork	Litter picking or other activities to improve your local area can give pupils an opportunity to help others and develop empathy and teamwork skills