Schools required to have Climate Action Plan, sustainability lead by September 2025

Schools in England must have a Climate Action Plan in place by September 2025, as mandated by the UK’s Department for Education (DfE). In its 2022 Climate and Sustainability Strategy, the government laid out a multi-pronged approach to ensure that the education sector is also tackling climate change. Along with a Climate Action Plan, schools must appoint a sustainability lead to champion the Plan. In this article, we’re summarising what schools need to know and how to get started.

Who has to comply and what are the requirements?

Early years settings, schools, multi-academy trusts, colleges, and universities are all required to comply. While the government Strategy outlined many topics, the most pressing deadline for schools is September 2025. In more detail, education settings must:

• Create a Climate Action Plan. This is a comprehensive strategy that details how a school will work to decarbonise and improve its energy efficiency in line with achieving the UK’s net zero goals. Action Plans can include taking steps such as improving heating and cooling systems, improving infrastructure and insulation, and educating staff and students on the climate emergency.
• Appoint a sustainability lead. The role of the sustainability lead is to drive forward both action and awareness for the school. Along with developing the Climate Action Plan, the sustainability lead will typically also monitor and report progress, build community engagement, and, in schools, integrate sustainability into the curriculum.

What resources are available to support the education sector in achieving net zero?

The Department for Education has created the Sustainability Support for Education, a free online resource to ensure that schools have access to accurate, correct information. The site is laid out to help sustainability leads and teams structure their Climate Action Plans step-by-step, as well as categorising common questions by topic. Information can be filtered based on teaching age, priorities, how far you’ve progressed already, estate, and more.

What happens if schools do not meet the September 2025 deadline?

While DfE has said that Climate Action Plans should be completed and sustainability leaders selected by September 2025, the repercussions of not meeting this deadline are still unclear. Though, the Climate and Sustainability strategy noted that progress against national targets will be published from 2025 onwards. So this may mean that schools falling behind on the deadline could face possible criticism when progress, or lack thereof, is published.

Get started on your Climate Action Plan

Wondering what the best first steps are when it comes to a Climate Action Plan? Our Energy and Compliance Consultants at Sustainable Energy First can offer specialised support in targeting your net zero goals. Whether it’s greening your energy supply, or completing an energy audit, our team can help you sift through the information to get started.

Get in touch with one of our experts today for a free, no-obligations conversation.